Safe coop?

[Jennyhaschicks]

We got our coop mostly done. Done enough so our older chicks can go out instead of being in a brooder.
I keep telling dh to seal up any small holes in the coop so nothing can get in and get them. I feel so frustrated with him. He keep saying our chicks will be fine, but I don't feel like he has beefed up the safety of the house and much as he should. He is one of these people that thinks "that won't happen to us."
Can anyone please give me some tips on making sure this is safe. We are new at this and I know there is stuff we are not going to think of to do.
Any advice?

 

[krcote]

make sure the top is covered!

 

[Dixiedoodle]

I am a nut about security! The very thought of having my chickens murdered makes me sick. I would hate to have to be the one that has to clean up after an attack...We are just really getting our coop going.. we have cement floor, 1/4" hardware cloth over the windows and vents. I have 7/8" barnsiding on the outside of the coop and 1/2" plywood on the inside.. The run will be 10' chainlink fencing-8' around the entire run and is 2' 'L' laid in the ground, w/ 1/2" X 48" hardware cloth around the bottom. The top of the run will be covered with chainlink fencing also. The door is a reg. steel exterior. The gate is chainlink and hardware cloth and will be secured with a pad lock.... There will be cement poured under the gate and a foot outside prevent digging..

 

[Chirpy]

Pretty much what Dixiedoodle said. However, I will state that personally I won't use chainlink as my own dog has ripped through it like it wasn't even there!! This was a 100 plus pound dog but she tore more holes in our chain link dog run ... it was unbelievable except I had to keep fixing the holes.

Hardware cloth is always the very best - I don't think anything except maybe a bear could get through it. My next choice would be 2x4 welded or woven wire (woven is stronger) with hardware cloth wrapped around the bottom two feet and buried at least 15-18 inches into the ground. Since I couldn't afford the hardware cloth around my run I used 1" chicken wire in it's place.

I absolutely would use hardware cloth over any windows or ventilation holes in your coop though.

If you have little holes you could have weasels, snakes, rodents and even cats get inside - if you have any of those in your area. And, little holes tend to become bigger if a raccoon finds it and starts messing with it.

Hopefully your hubby will realize that overdoing it to begin with (at least in his eyes) could save you heartache and money down the road if a predator gets in and kills your chickens.