YO GEORGIANS! :)

[ronnhill7]

just found a roll of 1/2" hardware cloth at Home Depot 48"x100ft for $153. I am thinking that would be good deal?

Hubby no longer trusts my math skills since 3 chickens turned into 12 on my way home.

Hubby is really really in love with that t-post idea above. For some reason he doesn't like digging in our clay

Actually you must be an incredibly gifted mathematician to be able to multiply 3 chickens into 12 on your drive home; what a genius! Would you be willing to take a $20.00 dollar bill from me and ride around with it on your next trip???

 

[ronnhill7]

New here!!
Pike county

I'm over in Woodbury, Welcome to the flock. If there is any way I can help you, feel free to let me know.

 

[ronnhill7]

You are as sweet as you can be, but I cannot make myself go too far with all 4 kids home for summer and work!!!! I'm going to pick up Isbar, CL, and Choc/Cuckoo Orps tomorrow to set with the solid white Polish BECAUSE I AM CRAZY!!!!!!

Here she goes again Brucifer; I knew she would go completely zig-zaggy sooner or later didn't we see it coming?

 

[livhatcher]

Here she goes again Brucifer; I knew she would go completely zig-zaggy sooner or later didn't we see it coming?

Now I feel like y'all are just placing wagers on me while I fry up some chicken for my children. I am merely meeting my original goal of having beautiful crested chickens among my colorful foundation layers. I have only 15 birds. We don't have to talk about the 21 eggs I'm setting tomorrow...well, at least until I need to part with some of them!!

 

[brucifer]

Looking for some pricing advice. I have a trio of bantam mixed EEs, two hens and a Roo, that I'm trying to sell. They got the blue eggs and bantam size of their daddy and I'm selling them as a group.
What do you think I should price them at?

The blue eggs are a plus. Folks seem to really like those. If the trio are in their first year, and if the eggs from the hens are decent size, and if the birds are pretty, $50 sounds reasonable IMHO.

We are going to start making a run about 34' x 12' - what materials are recommended to keep it predator proof and yet not break my bank account? We were also wanting to make it 5'-6' tall so we don't have to squat walk inside.

If you want to make your outside fence five or six feet tall, then it can get expensive. That being said, a relatively inexpensive option to consider is going with 60"h x 100' 2x4 welded wire ($90 per roll at TSC) with t-posts, and then overlay the bottom inside of the perimeter with 24"h 1/2 hardware cloth, mostly to keep the chickens from sticking their necks out through the 2x4 fence openings. You would need to tie-wrap or wire the hardware cloth to the welded wire fencing. You're still going to have a potential issue with snakes and hawks; but dogs, raccoons, and foxes will be kept out. You could also add some inexpensive plastic bird netting if you want to keep most of the snakes out, and you could top the run with 2x4 welded wire to keep the hawks away. The 6 1/2' t-posts would be about $4 each at TSC, and you would need 16 of those for a 12' x 36' run and just one 100' roll of welded wire. If you put on a top with welded wire, you would need more t-posts to keep the top from sagging and an extra 100' roll of welded wire.

just found a roll of 1/2" hardware cloth at Home Depot 48"x100ft for $153. I am thinking that would be good deal?

That's a decent immediate deal from a box store, but you can get a better price on Amazon:

 

[brucifer]

I have only 15 birds.

That is a VERY dangerous and telling line! You're husband is in trouble!

 

[EmilyP]

If you want to make your outside fence five or six feet tall, then it can get expensive. That being said, a relatively inexpensive option to consider is going with 60"h x 100' 2x4 welded wire ($90 per roll at TSC) with t-posts, and then overlay the bottom inside of the perimeter with 24"h 1/2 hardware cloth, mostly to keep the chickens from sticking their necks out through the 2x4 fence openings. You would need to tie-wrap or wire the hardware cloth to the welded wire fencing. You're still going to have a potential issue with snakes and hawks; but dogs, raccoons, and foxes will be kept out. You could also add some inexpensive plastic bird netting if you want to keep most of the snakes out, and you could top the run with 2x4 welded wire to keep the hawks away. The 6 1/2' t-posts would be about $4 each at TSC, and you would need 16 of those for a 12' x 36' run and just one 100' roll of welded wire. If you put on a top with welded wire, you would need more t-posts to keep the top from sagging and an extra 100' roll of welded wire.

View attachment 1027821

We are going to start making a run about 34' x 12' - what materials are recommended to keep it predator proof and yet not break my bank account? We were also wanting to make it 5'-6' tall so we don't have to squat walk inside.

Here is a pic of our hybrid chicken pen. First half was T-posts with 2x4 welded wire around it with regular chicken wire over the top and a second layer of graded wire around the bottom. Addition 1 was 3 sides of a dog pen and cut a hole between. It's not the prettiest but it works.

 

[JennD08]

Our coop is a prebuilt for now and is 4'x6' in some weird orange spray they put on the wood (the picture and description showed unfinished) - so was that ever a blinding surprise when we opened boxes to assemble. I wasn't sure whose ratio was best for figuring space for the chickens and if they meant coop or run or both. There seem to be quite a few different ones online.

 

[brucifer]

Here is a pic of our hybrid chicken pen. First half was T-posts with 2x4 welded wire around it with regular chicken wire over the top and a second layer of graded wire around the bottom. Addition 1 was 3 sides of a dog pen and cut a hole between. It's not the prettiest but it works.

Emily, I think y'all did a great job. I like the idea of a chicken-wire top to keep the hawks at bay.

 

[EmilyP]

Emily, I think y'all did a great job. I like the idea of a chicken-wire top to keep the hawks at bay.

Thanks! The only issue we've had with it is one of the hens will occasionally get up there and not know how to get down!