Should the bottom of the coop be covered with wire fencing?

[pzlehr]

I am new to raising chickens and have 5 good egg layers right now. I have noticed something digging or trying to dig little holes under the edge of the coop to get inside. One time I saw a bunch of feathers all over. Can the bottom of the coop be covered with wire fencing to keep the little critters out? I am sort of thinking NOT, since the chickens could get their claws caught while scratching around. It is a small coop and 2 people can move it. Is their an easy way of keeping the little critters out?? Thanks for any help!

 

[SkyWorld]

The area around your coop is soft enough that something is digging to get in and you had better build or trench in a boarder of defense to protect your hens. You can secure it with a rim of concrete or bricks. That is what I did until I can get something better built around. The soil where I have my coop is hard clay, so a simple row of concrete blocks and bricks work for me.


Check out the coop designs and look for a solution that will fit your coop. You can dig a trench and lay one or two feet above the dirt and two feet down into the ground. See what works best for you and have fun.

 

[WNCcluck]

I am new to raising chickens and have 5 good egg layers right now. I have noticed something digging or trying to dig little holes under the edge of the coop to get inside. One time I saw a bunch of feathers all over.  Can the bottom of the coop be covered with wire fencing to keep the little critters out?  I am sort of thinking NOT, since the chickens could get their claws caught while scratching around.  It is a small coop and 2 people can move it.  Is their an easy way of keeping the little critters out??  Thanks for any help!

They're digging to get in the coop or the run? Does the coop have a dirt floor?

When we used a smaller tractor coop and moved it frequently, we made what we called "predator panels". We took old wire closet shelving and used cable ties to attach hardware cloth to the shelving. That gave us the advantages of the hardware cloth and the ease of moving a panel rather than floppy wire.

The panels were lightweight by our standards but required that human novelty- the opposable thumb - for easy moving. There was only one panel for each side of the 4x8 tractor.

Your instincts about not having a wire floor are on target. Keep searching. You'll find an answer that works for you.

 

[MeepBeep]

A lot of people use wire mesh on the bottom of tractors to keep stuff out, it's not a perfect solution because as you said chickens like to scratch at the ground but it can work if there are no other viable options...