What do you use for the top of your run?

[16 paws]

Hi there,
Sad day, one of my polish flew over the fenced in run and got taken by something.

I want to cover the top of my run so they cant fly over. I was looking for different ideas on what to get for the top. The area is not square and runs kind of irregular and is also on a slope. So that means one side is higher than the other.We did chicken wire on the top of the other run for the LF but that was really hard to work with I thought. Has anyone used aviary net and did you like it? Thanks for any help here.....
Marie

 

[thomasboyle]

I initially used chicken wire for my roof, supported by a PVC pipe frame. But here in CT, the snow would accumulate on the chicken wire and collapse the frame. But in southern CA, you should not have that problem! I used 1" PVC, but found it was a little too flexible for the 7' spans I had on the 15x15 run. So I would go with 1 1/2" or 2" PVC. You can zip tie the chicken wire to the PVC. Please note chicken wire will not keep out many predators. Dogs, fox, raccoons etc can rip through it, so 1/2" hardware wire is a better choice if you are in an area with predators. I have since re-build the run using lumber and aluminum roofing so it will survive our winters.

 

[jetdog]

Bird or deer netting will keep the birds in and hawks/owls out but thats about it.

 

[16 paws]

Thanks for the advice Thomasboyle. That is a beautiful job!
Marie