![]() When picking a lock for your door, get one that even a raccoon can’t open. All the openings are lined with hardware cloth and a skirt around the edge is lined with hardware cloth then covered with rock to prevent digging predators. Any digging predator would have to dig more than two feet to get into our coop. We lined ours with landscape cloth to prevent weeds then used timbers to create a rock bed around the edge of the coop. Staple the shorter side to the bottom of the coop and the long side lay on the ground. ![]() Using a 2 x 4, bend it into an “L” with a short side (less than a foot) and a long side (less than two feet). To do this, cut a piece of hardware cloth the length of the side of the coop and about three feet wide. Personally, we ran it almost two feet around the whole perimeter to make a skirt. Every opening should be covered, even small spots up by the ceiling any opening is a possible entrance for a predator.Īdditionally, you can run hardware cloth around the perimeter to prevent digging. Hardware cloth is stronger than chicken wire and when held in place with heavy-duty wire staples provides good resistance to the most determined creatures. Instead of chicken wire, use hardware cloth for your runs and window openings. If you are purchasing a pre-made coop, inspect all the parts and don’t buy anything that’s flimsy. The materials for constructing your coop should be sturdy. Keep that in mind as you put together your chicken coop design. ![]() Before you even get birds, consider the predators that live in your area. One of your biggest and most important tasks as a chicken keeper will be to keep your birds safe from predators. Just about every predator out there likes to eat chickens: coyotes, fox, raccoons, opossums, hawks. Let’s look at each of these pieces of basic chicken coop design a little more closely. Finally, you have to be able to keep it all clean. The chickens must be protected from cool winds and precipitation, but you also need to allow for ventilation in the coop. You’ll need to provide a place for the hens to lay their eggs and for all the birds to roost at night. You must give them enough room inside the coop. Whether you plan to construct a high-end, designer chicken coop or something basic, you’ll need to keep your birds safe from predators. When thinking about basic chicken coop design, you need to consider six main things.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |