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my chickens keep getting eaten by foxes (presumably, as i haven't seen what's actually getting them). I've about given up on raising more until i can get a better fence in place.
You need to dig a trench about 4" deep, put the fence with he bottom at the bottom of the trench then fill the trench with concrete. That keeps things form digging in. Use heavier wire than chicken wire, or double it up if you only have chicken wire. Use treated 4x4s for fence posts and set them deep. Then you need to beuild a top over the run to keep hawks and eagles out. And keep raccoons from climbing over. Make sure your gate has latches at the top and bottom and something to keep things from digging under. Better to put the coop inside the run entirely than to attach the run to the front of the coop (lie we did). but that means you have to go into the run to clean the coop. Make sure half or so of the top over your run is solid to provide shade and at least half is fence to allow sun.
Oh BTW, chicken poop makes absolutely amazing fertilizer.
You need to dig a trench about 4" deep, put the fence with he bottom at the bottom of the trench then fill the trench with concrete. That keeps things form digging in. ...
...Oh BTW, chicken poop makes absolutely amazing fertilizer.
All good advice, although if you go 6-8" deep with the trench you can probably avoid using the concrete.
The droppings are excellent fertilizer because the birds eat so much meat (bugs, worms, etc) so it contains a lot of nitrogen. Some people put their coops in the middle of a double sized garden plot with fencing to divide it into two gardens. The chickens are then rotated from year to year to grow garden on one side while the hens have access to the other side for their run, fertilizing as they go.
my chickens keep getting eaten by foxes (presumably, as i haven't seen what's actually getting them). I've about given up on raising more until i can get a better fence in place.
From my experience: a missing hen plus some scattered feathers in an open area = hawk predation; hen corpse with only the head gone = raccoon, skunk or 'possum predation; whole hen absent and maybe a few feathers remaining = coyote or fox(?) predation.
The varmints do their deeds at nite; hawks during the day. My chickens were free range but had access to copious cover from trees & shrubs. They're pretty smart about staying out of open places and hawk losses were rare. Losses to varmints were my fault when my old bones pooped out early and I didn't lock the coop door. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
From my experience: a missing hen plus some scattered feathers in an open area = hawk predation; hen corpse with only the head gone = raccoon, skunk or 'possum predation; whole hen absent and maybe a few feathers remaining = coyote or fox(?) predation.
The varmints do their deeds at nite; hawks during the day. My chickens were free range but had access to copious cover from trees & shrubs. They're pretty smart about staying out of open places and hawk losses were rare. Losses to varmints were my fault when my old bones pooped out early and I didn't lock the coop door. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
I didn't know that possums ate chickens. Shoot, they don't even eat the canned cat food I leave out for the stray Siamese cat that feed in the backyard, but they sure gobble up the dry kitty kibble! (They're messy.)
You need to dig a trench about 4" deep, put the fence with he bottom at the bottom of the trench then fill the trench with concrete. That keeps things form digging in. Use heavier wire than chicken wire, or double it up if you only have chicken wire. Use treated 4x4s for fence posts and set them deep. Then you need to beuild a top over the run to keep hawks and eagles out. And keep raccoons from climbing over. Make sure your gate has latches at the top and bottom and something to keep things from digging under. Better to put the coop inside the run entirely than to attach the run to the front of the coop (lie we did). but that means you have to go into the run to clean the coop. Make sure half or so of the top over your run is solid to provide shade and at least half is fence to allow sun.
Oh BTW, chicken poop makes absolutely amazing fertilizer.
sounds like a lot of work. I guess that's why I haven't gone to the trouble
thanks for the advice, hopefully i can make a springtime project out of it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by guidoLaMoto
From my experience: a missing hen plus some scattered feathers in an open area = hawk predation; hen corpse with only the head gone = raccoon, skunk or 'possum predation; whole hen absent and maybe a few feathers remaining = coyote or fox(?) predation.
The varmints do their deeds at nite; hawks during the day. My chickens were free range but had access to copious cover from trees & shrubs. They're pretty smart about staying out of open places and hawk losses were rare. Losses to varmints were my fault when my old bones pooped out early and I didn't lock the coop door. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
i lost 3 last year and two this year.
#1 last year, found only some scattered feathers, leading into the woods
#2 last year, simply disappeared without a trace
#3 last year, found partially eaten, but more than just the head
#1 this year, vanished without a trace
#2 this year, some scattered feathers
the only predator I've personally seen is foxes but my wife claims to have seen a hawk actually eyeing them last year.
sounds like a lot of work. I guess that's why I haven't gone to the trouble
thanks for the advice, hopefully i can make a springtime project out of it.
One thing that can make it a lot easier. For this purpose there is no need to mix the concrete. Just dump the contents of the bag into your trench, even it out, and soak it with the hose. Much easier. You are not worried about the concrete being structural, just preventing digging under. or banding the fence up.
The idea of digging 8" deep is probably a good alternative. It will not work for me because we hit basically concrete soil at about 6" sometimes less.
One thing that can make it a lot easier. For this purpose there is no need to mix the concrete. Just dump the contents of the bag into your trench, even it out, and soak it with the hose. Much easier. You are not worried about the concrete being structural, just preventing digging under. or banding the fence up.
The idea of digging 8" deep is probably a good alternative. It will not work for me because we hit basically concrete soil at about 6" sometimes less.
digging is problematic for me because the entire area where the chickens are is like a minefield of sandstone chunks. you can scarcely put a spade 2 inches into the ground anywhere without hitting some.
An alternative I have seen is using chain link for the floor of the coop...
Neighbors have lost Chickens to foxes... the dug under and that stopped when he put stretched chain link for the floor... didn't stopped the fox from trying but from getting in.
The Chickens also scatter for cover when the hawks fly... they will see the hawk long before I do...
An alternative I have seen is using chain link for the floor of the coop...
Neighbors have lost Chickens to foxes... the dug under and that stopped when he put stretched chain link for the floor... didn't stopped the fox from trying but from getting in.
The Chickens also scatter for cover when the hawks fly... they will see the hawk long before I do...
I'm guessing Chickens have pretty fair eyesight?
That is a good idea. One neighbor poured a concrete floor for his entire chicken run, then laid in dirt so stuff can grow.
...... The right dog, on the other hand, can be a "right-hand man" at varmint control.........
This looks like a good place to jump in. What about dachshunds? When I was a child and we lived at Clark AFB, the houseboy would take our dachs on walks and, supposedly, rats would jump across her path. She would snap their necks without breaking pace.
Otherwise, saw my first roaming cat today. I don't know if it was a stray or from another's ranch, but it came in over the border rocks, proceeded through the tall grasses, and it looked like it was hunting.
ANYHOW, eventually I am thinking of getting chickens (and goats, but that may be another thread) on my 10 acre ranch.
One thing on the back of my mind is do they require daily attention? Will I be able to take the weekend off? Can some kind of automated system be set up to open doors, disperse food?
Since it is a ranch, we are talking about an availability of space if necessary, such as to, perhaps, take the complexity out of an automated system, perhaps using hydraulics in part from the well (yes, now)-irrigation (in theory) system.....in theory.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Crazy4Chickens
I tend to disagree. In my experience a cat or two can drastically cut down the rodent population around a house or in a barn.....
Around here, at least at the start of the century, they had feral cats at some of the city's wells for rodent control.
Last edited by TamaraSavannah; 11-30-2017 at 02:22 AM..
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