Suggestions for insulation/weatherizing old dairy barn for chickens

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The mice here would scoot through the 1/2 inch hardware cloth like it was not even there. I used 1/4 inch on my windows for the coop. I am in town and my windows all close well so I am not to worried about the smaller gauge and racoons.
I know of no real way to keep them from making nests in the walls except not having any place they can hide.
I have found them going into the new coop through the pop door since they have no other access. Luckily I have a couple hens that are more than willing to kill any mouse I flush out from behind the nest boxes. (They are not screwed down or to a wall so I can remove for cleaning.)
Even with all my efforts the hens are still showing some chew spots on their backs.
 
I watched a video the Beekissed posted regarding deep litter and ventilation. After PMing her about it, Im deciding to go that route. I bring it up because her coop is just alittle hoop house that really has a bit of ventilation. Way more than I would expect but because of how she does this true deep litter method, theyre thriving, an also shes not far from me so our winters are the same. So, Im deciding to instead putting up plywood for a wall, Im going wire. Theres wire mesh I thought about, still am, but I just may use the welded wire I have. Im not sure what you guys are considering hardware cloth. Chain link? Mesh? That mesh can come in pretty tight. No mouse would get thru. Its essentially heavy duty screen. Anyhow, I may not make it Fort Knox in regards to mice. Rats, different story. I'm still mulling it over in my head what Im gonna do. Unexpectedly today, I scored 5 leaves bags of essentially forest floor, the debris that you would find on a forest floor. Thats what this lady uses. Her coop smells like the woods, and its certainly natural for their needs. If anyone wants to see the link, I'll find it and post it here.
 
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Thank you. Yes Im reading all about it now. i too am going to trap. I dont want to use poison and have another animal eat them. I swear if I came across a rat in the coop Id probably want to take the shotgun and turn the coop into swiss cheese. I really hate rats. Im mainly concerned with the diseases they can spread and now I know itll likely be due to the water and droppings. I was concerned with bites or the chickens killing them.
 
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If a chicken does get ahold of a mouse or God forbid a rat. Do yourself a favor and do not chase the chicken. (trust me I have done this much to my husbands delight)
You cannot catch a chicken in a game of keep away.
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I had a stupid squirrel getting into my coop and taking eggs one year. He met the Delaware hen and did not leave alive.
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She got him while I was at work. All I ever found was a foot and about an inch of the tail.

Hardware cloth is very expensive at Home Depot. There are other sources for it that are much cheaper. The 1/4 inch cloth I got was 2'x50' for 40 dollars at the farm store.
 
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Thank you for the information. Now I must go measure every vent on my coop and make sure nothing over 1/4 inch exists in the mesh.
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I have 11 windows with hardware cloth. I may be a while measuring it all.
I think I will buy some spray foam to make sure the metal roofing is sealed at the edges too.
 

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