Fort Knox for Chickens

[Mukluk]

I bought this to use as a chicken coop

https://www.costco.com/Lucky-Dog-Black-Modular-Welded-Wire-Kennel-with-Cover%2C-10’-L-x-5’-W-x-6’H.product.100327100.html

In my area we have coyotes, raccoons, bobcats etc.

I am going to set this up within a fenced area. I am thinking it would be a good idea to make a pad of at least 6" of gravel underneath that extends out 1 foot on all sides (the gravel would be enclosed by landscape timbers (width x height = 5" x 8)." I can dig down if more depth for gravel is needed. Would putting hardware cloth across the bottom of the cage be overkill? I want to prevent anything from digging up from underneath.

The roof is just the tarp so I will need to use hardware cloth or something so no critters can climb up sides and get in underneath the tarp. The spaces between the wires are 4" x 2" so I am thinking it would be a good idea to add a few feet of chicken wire around the bottom perimeter to keep raccoon hands out). I will be building a wooden chicken house inside that will likely be three feet off the ground so the chickens can use the whole footprint of the kennel for picking, dust baths and other chicken activities. Greatly appreciate any advice/suggestions. I’m planning on having 3 to 6 hens.

[Bluey]

Skunks and rabbits get in our chainlink yard all the time, squeezing thru the 2" x 2" holes.
They squeeze thru again when I chase them back out.

I think that chicken wire will be necessary to keep them out.
Skunks love chicks and eggs and any chicken they can catch.

Chicken wire or hardware cloth over the tarp will also help with bigger varmint, like coons.

We had an old garden shed made into a coop and still had to use hardware cloth on the window to keep coons out.

Rats also eat chicks and they can dig easily under gravel beds.
Snakes also come to the buffet, nothing like reaching for an egg and have a big snake right there claiming it.

I wonder if you should put some kind of wire also partly under that gravel?

They sell “chicken tractors”, mobile chicken houses and yards you can move around to different places.
You can see some in these pictures:

https://amarillo.craigslist.org/grd/…521705596.html

You may want to see how those are constructed and use some of their ideas for your coop?

[Mango20]

It’s pretty common to make an apron of hardware cloth extending outside the coop to thwart anything that wants to dig under. They’re generally not smart enough to back up a foot and dig there instead. You do NOT want to put hardware cloth on the floor inside the run. It could lead to multiple issues for the chickens, including “bumblefoot” or just injuries from scratching at the wires.

[HungarianHippo]

You need hardware cloth, for sure. Chicken wire is useless for predator protection, a raccoon can easily bend/tear it apart, and they can claw and chew through wood, too. Trust me on this, they’re incredibly strong and determined.
I’m not sure how you plan to build and attach that roof? I think I’d get a 10ft utility gate to lay on top like a lid, and attach the hardware cloth to that.

Weasels, etc can all get through 4x2" wire, and they climb, so while circling the bottom of the cage with hardware cloth is a good start, it’s not predator-proof. Likely you’ll get away with it for some time, but then one night you’ll realize a weasel has gotten your number and all hens will be gone. Unfortunately chickens are delicious to a lot of wildlife.

[Mukluk]

I am also planning to get some motion detector lights in an effort to scare away night time predators.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009M3BRQC/ref=asc_df_B009M3BRQC5408143/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=394997&creativeASIN=B009M3BRQC&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167152392179&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6377305543568195762&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9031713&hvtargid=pla-315750280295#customerReviews

Anyone tried these?

[goodhors]

Hard cloth wire is needed to prevent coons and weasels reaching thru the bigger holes and grabbing chickens to kill them. They might try pulling chickens out thru the big hole wire. That is pretty messy to find.

Pretty much everything likes chickens to eat. It can be VERY discouraging trying to keep a few chickens alive and healthy enough to be productive.

[Mukluk]

@Mango20

It’s pretty common to make an apron of hardware cloth extending outside the coop to thwart anything that wants to dig under. They’re generally not smart enough to back up a foot and dig there instead. You do NOT want to put hardware cloth on the floor inside the run. It could lead to multiple issues for the chickens, including “bumblefoot” or just injuries from scratching at the wires.

I would have bedding over the hardware cloth or maybe even rubber mats under the bedding.

[PeteyPie]

I’ve seen a good method to keep out determined diggers. You make a trench around the outside of the fence/perimeter and bend an appropriately-sized wire fencing/mesh so that about 2 or 3 feet of the mesh lies flat on the trench then bends up onto the lower half of the fence. Then cover the wire, the part which is flat in the bottom of the trench, with several inches of soil or gravel. When the animals approach the fence and attempt to dig under, they will find themselves in a dead end in the inside fold of the wire mesh.

It’s best to do it this way rather than have the mesh angle toward the inside of the enclosure because an accomplished digger will just dig a longer tunnel toward the inside. But if you install the mesh as described, facing out, they don’t seem to catch on to the idea of moving away from the fence and starting their tunnel project several feet out before they reach the fence.

[HungarianHippo]

@Mukluk

I would have bedding over the hardware cloth or maybe even rubber mats under the bedding.

It’s not about needing cushion, it’s about their instinctive 'scratching ’ behavior. When they scratch, they really claw at the ground with a lot of force. My hens can dig pretty big holes If they’re trying to do this on sn unforgiving wire 'floor", it may injure their feet. I think bending the wire out/away, rather than is the best solution.

[Mukluk]

@HungarianHippo

It’s not about needing cushion, it’s about their instinctive 'scratching ’ behavior. When they scratch, they really claw at the ground with a lot of force. My hens can dig pretty big holes If they’re trying to do this on sn unforgiving wire 'floor", it may injure their feet. I think bending the wire out/away, rather than is the best solution.

Thanks hungarian hippo.

[Gamma]

I think our neighbors dug down quite a bit and buried chicken wire under their coop.

We call theirs “The Hen-itentiary”, they have everything except a tower with a spotlight and a guard…

[TMares]

That wire won’t stop snakes and it won’t stop wild birds and squirrels from eating your chicken feed. The whole thing (not the floor) needs to be covered in hardware cloth.

[HungarianHippo]

OK, so let’s back up. I feel like you need to put so much work into this dog crate, and the end result won’t be pretty, that it may not be worth the lower price that was probably its main attraction.

Honestly I’d focus on a very secure nighttime enclosure with solid walls and floor, and a door that gets shut every night*. Then the larger outdoor run doesn’t have to be as robust & costly. Scour CL or other local sites for a used garden/tool shed. The main digging / breaking-and-entering threats will be nocturnal. There is much less risk during the day-- simple overhead netting is enough to protect from hawks, and well-stretched chicken wire is enough to deter neighborhood dogs. (Hardware cloth is of course better – raccoons can sometimes hunt during the day. But our flock is completely free-range and we’ve never lost one during the day. It’s the nighttime maurauders that will get ya.)

• Note: I built an automatic door that opens/closes their coop door, so we can go out to dinner or away for the weekend without worrying about the hens. Highly recommend.

[Bellathemustang]

You just need the right tool for the job, in this case a LGD

I just moved my ducks outside and use a wire dog crate for now since they are still growing. It is so nice not worrying about predators at night or during the day when they are free ranging.

I am an animal pusher though, if there is half a reason to get a new animal I will make it happen :lol:

[Mukluk]

OK thanks for the ideas. Maybe I just need to get one of those big livestock protector dogs that hates the taste of chicken?

[LegalTexan]

I build my own shed with mostly recycled materials - I put the posts in and put cinderblock between then , then filled with base - that raised it up a few inches. On top of that I put concrete stepping stones- easy to clean out . Each side of the coop has a window- I also used a window as a door. Over the windows I put hardware cloth , so I can open them and nothing comes in that way. They have a chicken yard with lots of hiding spaces as well as a LGD that likes to check between them and the goats One of the biggest bonus protectors where the purple martins - they attacked hawks 3 times that we watched- no idea how many other times, but its interesting to watch. My main concern was to keep predators out. I knew I would loose some due to the fact that we have a good variety of predators, but I wanted to limit my loss. To find a dog that doesnt like to eat chickens- good luck. I had one heeler- she was awesome- we had a couple discussions about chickens, but in the end, she seemed to have the philosophy that if she couldnt touch the chickens, neither was anything else- she almost killed a hawk that tried to get one of my hens. The pack we have now doesnt touch any of my flock - they protect them, but dont touch them. Have you checked with other chicken owners in the area and see what they do? How cold does it get? I had a “dog cage” set up before, but a few years back we had quite a cold winter and despite precautions and blocking off the wind, I could see that my girls where not quite happy and thats when I decided that I wanted something more solid. When we get nasty weather now, lots of times they dont even want to come out for most of the day

[Bellathemustang]

@Mukluk

OK thanks for the ideas. Maybe I just need to get one of those big livestock protector dogs that hates the taste of chicken?

Yes! I have a maremma, and he is the best thing that has happened to this hobby farm He loves the horses, other dogs, cats, and fowl. I could not imagine predator control without him. He has made my life so much easier and more enjoyable. And he is great company It is a joy to have a partner that loves the crew as much as I do.

Even the best fence doesn’t have a brain. Spot is worth his weight in gold.

[Mukluk]

I am thinking of putting cement or concrete pavers about 6" below coop level and then attaching hardware cloth to sides that goes down past pavers and fanning it out to form an apron. There are a lot of gophers around and I think I need something on the bottom of the coop to keep them out. Then putting 6" to 8" of dirt on top of the pavers. There will be a wooden coop inside the 5x10 enclosure. When I am home, Chickens can be turned out into 65 x 30 foot fenced enclosure where the chicken pen will be. I have two goats living in the 65 x 30 foot area.

[Bluey]

@Mukluk

I am thinking of putting cement or concrete pavers about 6" below coop level and then attaching hardware cloth to sides that goes down past pavers and fanning it out to form an apron. There are a lot of gophers around and I think I need something on the bottom of the coop to keep them out. Then putting 6" to 8" of dirt on top of the pavers. There will be a wooden coop inside the 5x10 enclosure. When I am home, Chickens can be turned out into 65 x 30 foot fenced enclosure where the chicken pen will be. I have two goats living in the 65 x 30 foot area.

Sounds like a good idea, keeping chickens safe beats attrition of loose chickens any day.
Chickens are like gasses, they expand to the volume given, but are fine compressed also.
One advantage of confined chickens for us was no more cannibalism.
For some reason, chickens running outside once in a while would injure one of them pecking at it, maybe it got some strange smell somewhere.
Once we confined them to a chicken yard, that didn’t happen but once in decades.

You still may let them run around outside if you want to when you are there to watch over them, then confine them again when you leave the area.

[Mukluk]

Thanks everyone for your input. The wooden coop (inside the kennel) with have a roost but I am also going to put a few perches up in the kennel so they can hang out on those if so inclined.