Your thoughts on a temporary chicken run, please.

[kevinhannan]

I would like to give my ex-bats a larger run-around space if possible.
I'd also like to be able to move it around my garden - hence the temporary
nature.

My materials are limited - I have around 20 metres of 1inch hole,
1 metre high chicken wire which I can use as a perimeter with
bamboo sticks spaced about every half-metre. I will also use
thin netting for the top. I also have tent pegs to secure the bottom
every half-metre. The ex-bats are full-grown.

I really cannot afford to be chasing chickens throughout my neighbourhood
although I do think I have them trained to come to me when I have worms
in my hands.

I have also clipped their flying feathers.

Can you envisage problems, or offer advice on how I can make the thing
more secure?

Many thanks for reading me.

 

[Steadfast]

Here is a photo of my chicken's out door "playground":
the reinforced chicken wire wall is 6 feet high, with no roof or netting...

The only problem I had was when one of my girls "got smart" and flapped her wings and ran up the chicken wire fence until she went over the top and escaped! YIKES!

SOOOOO, I got my dog out on the leash, had my daughter hold him, BARKING, as I ran her around the outside of the fence untle she found the door back in!!!
She was desperate to get away from the big bad wolf and get back into the "safty" of the playground!
She never tried THAT again...!

Fear will keep the Chicks in line...fear of the Empiror...and of his battle dog!

Just keep your birds fence under a tree canopy to reduce the threat of HAWKS...
and only let them out when you are close enough to watch over them.

 

[schmism]

i have seen clipped wing chickens stay inside a 3' tall chicken wire fence.

Provide them with plenty of ummyies inside the fence and they have no reason to see if the grass is greener on the other side (pun intended)

generally chickens dont range that far. they arnt like cats or dogs that will wonder off in the rest of the neighborhood. mine free range prefer a 100yrds of the coupe give or take.

 

[Hawkeye95]

A friend of mine created the neatest little run that can be easily moved around. She made a base of pvc pipe and then cut lenghts of it that hoop over the top- so it made a half circle shape. It can be lifted easily and moved around in the yard. Building with pvc pipe is pretty cheap too. I think she just used chicken wire or bird netting over it and put zip ties on it to keep the wire on. Looked like you could probably build one of those really fast in no time at all. I made a temporary run under my deck- I stapled up chicken wire around the posts. I did have to add a T post under there for a corner, but it was all free- except for the chicken wire, which was really inexpensive. Since the wire goes up to the deck, there is no escape from the top and means there is good shade, too. You could use T posts, put chicken wire around it (anywhere you want in your yard) and then get a bundle of avian netting from the farm store for about $30 to cover the top if you're worried they will get out.

 

[kevinhannan]

Thanks for all your replies, Steadfast, schism and hawkeye!

I *love* the photo; thanks for that! and thanks for the replies which have
given me the confidence to build something today to give my girls more
room!

I really appreciate the time you have given me - thanks again!