Tips for predator proofing chain link fence?

[perkolator]

IMO digging down for your anti-dig skirt/apron like pictured above is just giving yourself unnecessary work; horizontal skirt does the same thing.
Skim the dirt 1-2” down, around the perimeter so it’s mostly flat and lay HC horizontal on the ground, put a few anchors to keep it down, then cover with dirt, mulch, etc. do this about 18”+ horizontal.
Also do at least 18” vertical up the chain link to protect from predators that can reach through the holes at chicken-height (raccoons mainly).
A 36-48” roll of hardware cloth can be bent into an “L” to do both planes. I used galvanized fence wire to attach mine, some people use zip ties, hog rings, etc.

 

[Acre4Me]

Wow it’s coming along great! Your chickens are going to have a wonderful sanctuary! I can’t imagine how excited you are to get it done, I bug my fiancé about getting the little things done everyday and we’ve only been working on this for about a month or so, can’t imagine 4 years! Be sure to post when it’s all finished my fiancé is always talking about how these $4 chickens costed him $4000 he’s not wrong. But they deserve it. It really is crazy how much we put into anything for them!

Thanks!

Spouse likes things to look nice and neat and well made.

You see the building behind the main feature (the new fence) in the upper right? Yeah, that. All treated wood, built by spouse. All the angled wood matches (there is an interior partial wall with angled wood too along with angled back bracing), and the edges of the boards holding up the roof have an end detail on each end....that matches the end detail on some bean towers he built too. So, is it over done? Yes, yes it is. But does it look amazing? Yes, yes it does! Will it need to be re-done or rebuilt? No, not in our lifetime! Whew, onto the next project, right?

Cost of fencing....It was 60% more expensive when we finally found three 100-ft rolls to get the chicken run fence completed. But, it matches the other side we had already completed.

 

[raingarden]

Yeah. Wire is finally available again after two years, But, it's a whole lot more expensive than it was pre-pandemic.

 

[raingarden]

we’re also fixing the drainage so it’s not a constant mud bath back there.

A rain gutter on the building might fix that. Cool mural too.

 

[alinas2010]

A rain gutter on the building might fix that. Cool mural too.

Yes!! That’s on my list, it would help x1million! Thank you, my brother painted the mural, thought my ladies needed a rooster and nice landscape to gaze at.

 

[alinas2010]

Thanks!

Spouse likes things to look nice and neat and well made.

You see the building behind the main feature (the new fence) in the upper right? Yeah, that. All treated wood, built by spouse. All the angled wood matches (there is an interior partial wall with angled wood too along with angled back bracing), and the edges of the boards holding up the roof have an end detail on each end....that matches the end detail on some bean towers he built too. So, is it over done? Yes, yes it is. But does it look amazing? Yes, yes it does! Will it need to be re-done or rebuilt? No, not in our lifetime! Whew, onto the next project, right?

Cost of fencing....It was 60% more expensive when we finally found three 100-ft rolls to get the chicken run fence completed. But, it matches the other side we had already completed.

My fiancé is a perfectionist, also, the struggle is real. I’ve found that sometimes I can swallow the cost of things just to get them done well and out of my hair, but man prices have been crazy this past year, it’s been rough to come to terms with them, I’ll tell ya that much.