I understand this happened months ago and it’s an information request, not a how do I fix it question. I still think it’s fair game to comment on how it might have been done better to help others that read this. Your photo is a great example that hardware cloth can be torn by predators. It may get referenced for people that just don’t believe a critter can tear hardware cloth.
Those 200 pound logs being moved is one mystery. That doesn’t mean something had to be able to pick up 200 pounds and carry it away, they could just slide them or roll them. Were the logs round enough and maybe set up on raised ground or at least flat so they weren’t that hard to roll of slide? Was just one end slid out? Could something get between the log and the fence and push it away instead of grabbing hold and pulling? Just how hard was it to move them out of the way?
That photo doesn’t look like it made much of an attempt to dig underneath or am I just not seeing it? Some critters may be more likely to try digging than pulling on that wire.
Most of the stories on this forum of hardware cloth being torn is from big dogs. Occasionally a big male raccoon makes the list. I guess you can’t rule out a bear though I’d also expect more damage, more of a mashing and bashing than a small rip. I’d think a bear would try to go in higher.
I don’t know where you live or if there might be something else to consider, like maybe a wolverine or wolf, but my guess would be a big dog. How it moved that log is the mystery to me, not that the hardware cloth was torn. After four months I don’t think you will ever know for sure. All prints and scat are long gone.
I don’t know if something scared the critter away before it finished or if your defenses held well enough that it got frustrated and quit. If it’s been four months since you noticed some kind of attack, you are doing pretty well.
I assume you used a pneumatic staple gun to put some kind of construction staples in there. Your photo shows how well they held. When people read about staples on here they often think about the staples used in an office to staple some paper together. Those aren’t going to stop anything. But some of your staples do look rusty, which means their life is limited. When I attach mesh wire like hardware cloth of chicken wire to a flat surface I like to use a furring strip screwed on top of the wire’s edge. I drill pilot holes so it’s easier to screw and pilot holes also helps keep the wood form splitting. If the furring strips are soft so the screw head sinks in I usually use fender washers under the screw head. If you put the screws through holes in the mesh wire and clamp it down tight that connection will hold. It also covers the sharp edges so I don’t snag skin or clothing on it. It also makes it harder for critters to get a grip and pull. Others are happy with other methods.
Sorry you deleted that photo, it’s a good learning tool.
