One thing to note is if you are battling snakes in your area, you will probably want to consider a tighter mesh than other people who are more concerned about cats, dogs or birds. How To Predator-Proof Your Chicken Run Protecting Chickens From Snakes Most of the time you won’t be worrying about predators digging under your coop anyway, what you really should be concerned about is predators digging their way into your run area. Predators who might dig their way in won’t dig a tunnel, they’ll just dig enough to get under the frame in order to get in. It shouldn’t be too deep – you’re just trying to discourage digging activity. How to bury hardware cloth for a chicken coop: You simply lay it flat on the ground, and then cover it with dirt. In order to keep predators from digging under your chicken coop you can bury wire mesh such as chicken wire or hardware cloth. If you have openings underneath your coop at either end, you can put wire up vertically to block entrance underneath the coop. Keep Predators From Digging Under Your Chicken Coop You may not need an auto door if you have an attached chicken run, but then you run the risk of a predator such as a fox digging their way under the wall of the run and then getting into the hen house at night. To secure your coop, we recommend an automatic chicken door that closes on a timer. If you forget to close it at night, or you’re not around to do it at sunset, then that is going to be a wide-open opportunity for pretty much any predator to get into the coop. The next vulnerability is going to be your chicken door. It is our least expensive chicken coop upgrade, and the one that is most commonly purchased.

This is why we recommend predator proof wire mesh over your windows for total protection. Even if you have a screen on the window, it’s typically no match for a raccoon or bobcat. If you tend to leave windows open during the summer for ventilation, then that is going to be your number one concern. The biggest vulnerability in your chicken coop is going to be the windows. How To Predator-Proof Your Chicken Coop Wire Over Windows Predators that you need to protect your flock from can include: We have listed the best ways that we recommend securing your chicken coop and run against predators. One of the most common questions we get from chicken coop customers is “how can I keep predators out?” No matter where you live, there are critters out there who want your chickens, want their eggs, or both.

Predator proof chicken coop