What would best protect my chickens?

[aart]

but my worry is foxes. They have gone right through the fence in the past... :/

What kind of fence could a fox go right thru?

 

[cmom]

A covered pen and hot wire fencing or livestock guardian dog. Some use mules as protection. Fowl of any sort are generally nothing more than a stopgap or warning system.

I agree. I have lots of predators here. I have electric wire around my coops and pens, heavy duty netting covering the pens, concrete under the gates and in some places wire buried under the fence and attached to the fence. All was done due to losses from predators in the past. The concrete was put under the gates because a fox dug under a gate and killed several birds. I did catch the fox using one of the birds it killed as bait. Once they kill they will be back for more. Most of my fencing is welded wire with chicken wire. Nothing is getting through it. My welded wire is 2" x 4" and my chicken wire is 1". I put the chicken wire up to keep the males from sticking their heads through the welded wire and fighting with the males in the adjoining pens. I also put the welded wire separating the pens with the chicken wire. I have quite a large area so I used a lot of wire.

 

[cmom]

This is how I have my wire. Originally I used only chicken wire. I had no intrusions from predators breaking through the chicken wire but eventually it would degrade and have to be replaced so I put up the welded wire too.