Sanity Check

[CritterHill]

Quote:
So I read that and thought "Well now why didn't anyone mention this on my chicken wire thread?" So I went back and checked and saw that you did. My reading comprehension is not the best today. Apologies.

 

[airmom1c05]

LOL! That's OK. I was just browsing through recent posts and noticed that. Too many chicken thoughts can mess with your head. All the reading I do has given me what I call "Chicken Brains". Glad to know I'm not the only one.

 

[kstaven]

If you want to keep predators out of the run. Drop your wire as planned and then take a few bags of "Cement" and pour it on the ground over the wire. Water it in well and the ground below will be like a huge concrete block.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Chicken wire is not hard for raccoons, dogs or coyotes to rip apart.

For the top of the run you could use 2x4 welded wire fencing; for the sides, at least up to 3' or so you should use something smaller mesh (like 1x1) or use the 2x4 mesh but with hardware cloth attached to it on the bottom 3'. The reason for smaller openings at the bottom is to discourage weasels and to (most importantly) prevent raccoons from being able to reach through and grab handfuls of chickenflesh to pull out thru the fence to eat.

To some degree it may come down to a matter of economics. Call around before deciding, as Home Depot may not have the lowest prices on things like hardware cloth (try farm stores, feed stores, TSC, freecycle, craigslist, local construction-material recycling stores, etc).


Pat

 

[speckledhen]

I know the cost may seem daunting, but believe me, building it right the first time won't be as expensive as building with slightly cheaper materials, then REbuilding it when predators tear apart all your hard work.

 

[dozen chickens]

I am so excited for you! We started with almost exactly what you are starting with, so I will give you a bit of insight to some changes we will be making.

First, SIZE! We have 8 hens and 2 roosters and trust me the addiction started there. I now have (so far) 10 baby chicks in the garage. Needless to say, with the cold winter we have had this year, resulting in the ladies and gents being cooped up A LOT, the coop was not sufficient size. They definately needed a bit more space to be comfortable this winter. We had the thought that they free-range during the day so the coop didnt need to be that big, but we didnt think about chickens not liking the snow, therefore, they have stayed in the coop most winter days. We ended up raking them a trail to go under a couple large trailers we have out back. Anyhow, consider that you are likely to be "addicted" and next year you will end up with more.

Second, ELECTRICITY. Oh my gosh, I am SOOOOO done treking fresh water out to them numerous time per day. We do not have electricity either, and the thought of having to run 5-6 extension cords makes me really nervous about fire, so I just have had to keep tabs on their water situation and one week I made 36 trips out there to give them fresh, thawed water. A light on the outside woudl also be great for those nighttime trips out to them, working with the flashlight in one COLD hand gets old too. Ha ha!

Third, PREDATOR-PROOFING. We got REALLY, REALLY lucky and DH heard the commotion one evening and we were able to get the fox out of the coop and all fared just fine, the feathers the girls lost are now back and everyone is great, BUT it was a wakeup call for us. There was a gap a few inches between the screening over the top of the run and the coop, and Mr. Fox was able to squeeze in between it. We did a great job digging down around the run and running wire down into the ground deep, filling it with rocks, etc but we didnt even THINK of doing that around the coop itself so this winter we have completely surrounded the coop with STUFF a few feet out to deter any animals TRYING to get in. They probably couldnt because the ground is froze, but we werent taking any chances. That is another of our spring projects.

Needless to say, our coop is going to be added onto quite a bit, and we will be trenching electicity out to the coop as well. These things came up once winter was already here to stay and, therefore, we had to make up for it all until we can change it now that its getting warmer. Oh, another thing for us is that we made them 3 nests, but they also roost there so we get those yucky, pooied on eggs- that is another change this spring will bring!

Good luck!!!

 

[AtRendeAcres]

1st roost DH didn't work so last summer he made new one!

clean out was done on side this did not work for me either (it was to low for me to realisticly clean out (((especially when I decided to put more chickens on that side)))

I am pushing for a wood building to cut a door for clean out!