CreativeCowgirl said:
I'm planning on fencing my new chicken yard with 5' tall welded wire fence. The holes are 2" x 4". What are the pros and cons of this type of fencing? Will it be sufficient? I have heard horror stories about chicken wire so I didn't want to use that. Obviously the holes are big enough that a weasel may be able to slip through or a coon could climb up it, but hopefully my flock will always be inside the coop at night, so the coop will protect them better than the fence. Your thoughts on this?
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If you look at "My Coop" page you can see the chicken yard I did using this exact same fencing (5' high). My thinking was:
1. My flock was going from a free range situation to being contained, and I didn't want them to be penned into a tiny pen that would be nothing but dirt or mud most of the time. So, I created a "yard" for them that is 240x60. They still have grass to forage and tons of bugs, plus a tree right in the yard, so they still have the feel of free-range, yet are not pooping on the back deck.
2. I've seen chickens get out of fencing that is too solid, by jumping up to the top rail and then jumping down the other side. I figured the "flimsy" top of the welded wire and t-posts would keep them from getting out that way (I was right - they've never gone over the fence).
3. Although this type of yard is not predator proof, my coop is Fort Knox and they are locked in it at night. Since most predators come at night, I hoped this would eliminate most of my predator risk. (I had a fox get in in the middle of the afternoon about 3 weeks after moving my flock to the new place. I eliminated the fox and have had no further issues with predators since.)
4. I have two very chicken-safe dogs who sleep in the yard at night. Although they are not LGD's, my hope is that their presence will [continue to] deter would-be predators from hanging around at night.
The cons:
The wire spacing is too large to keep chicks in. I currently have a batch of month-old chicks who can run right through the fencing. So, I had to set up a dog pen in the yard, the chain link of which is reinforced with chicken wire to keep the little guys in. The chicks spend their day in the dog pen, and each evening I go out around 6pm and let them out of the dog pen for some supervised time with the flock. So far, the flock has been very tolerant of the chicks and if it weren't for the wire spacing issue, I would allow full integration now. As it is, I will have to wait until the chicks are too large to fit through the wire.
If you look at "My Coop" page you can see the chicken yard I did using this exact same fencing (5' high). My thinking was:1. My flock was going from a free range situation to being contained, and I didn't want them to be penned into a tiny pen that would be nothing but dirt or mud most of the time. So, I created a "yard" for them that is 240x60. They still have grass to forage and tons of bugs, plus a tree right in the yard, so they still have the feel of free-range, yet are not pooping on the back deck.2. I've seen chickens get out of fencing that is too solid, by jumping up to the top rail and then jumping down the other side. I figured the "flimsy" top of the welded wire and t-posts would keep them from getting out that way (I was right - they've never gone over the fence).3. Although this type of yard is not predator proof, my coop is Fort Knox and they are locked in it at night. Since most predators come at night, I hoped this would eliminate most of my predator risk. (I had a fox get in in the middle of the afternoon about 3 weeks after moving my flock to the new place. I eliminated the fox and have had no further issues with predators since.)4. I have two very chicken-safe dogs who sleep in the yard at night. Although they are not LGD's, my hope is that their presence will [continue to] deter would-be predators from hanging around at night.The cons:The wire spacing is too large to keep chicks in. I currently have a batch of month-old chicks who can run right through the fencing. So, I had to set up a dog pen in the yard, the chain link of which is reinforced with chicken wire to keep the little guys in. The chicks spend their day in the dog pen, and each evening I go out around 6pm and let them out of the dog pen for some supervised time with the flock. So far, the flock has been very tolerant of the chicks and if it weren't for the wire spacing issue, I would allow full integration now. As it is, I will have to wait until the chicks are too large to fit through the wire.
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Originally Posted by
Tom M King
Originally Posted by
I don't know of any good quality welded. I like no climb. We have some inside split rail and other fences to separate dogs and horses.
I can't remember the brand name, but it's the other brand than Redbrand that has thicker hot dipped. We have some that's older than ten years old that still looks good.
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