What I Learned After a Major Mistake with My Backyard Chickens
Posted: Wed Jan 15, 2025 2:45 am
When I built my first coop, I thought it was predator-proof because I buried the fencing a few inches into the ground.
What I didn’t know is that raccoons are expert diggers and can easily get under shallow fencing.
One morning, I woke up to find that something had tunneled into the run, and I lost two of my hens.
It was heartbreaking.
After doing some research, I learned about using an apron fence.
Instead of just burying the fencing straight down, you lay it out flat along the ground, extending about 12-18 inches outward from the coop and run.
Predators try to dig right at the base of the fence and hit the horizontal barrier, which they can’t figure out how to bypass.
It’s been a game-changer!
The lesson here is that it’s not just about making the coop sturdy but also thinking like a predator when planning your setup.
Chickens rely on us to keep them safe, and even small oversights can have big consequences.
What I didn’t know is that raccoons are expert diggers and can easily get under shallow fencing.
One morning, I woke up to find that something had tunneled into the run, and I lost two of my hens.
It was heartbreaking.
After doing some research, I learned about using an apron fence.
Instead of just burying the fencing straight down, you lay it out flat along the ground, extending about 12-18 inches outward from the coop and run.
Predators try to dig right at the base of the fence and hit the horizontal barrier, which they can’t figure out how to bypass.
It’s been a game-changer!
The lesson here is that it’s not just about making the coop sturdy but also thinking like a predator when planning your setup.
Chickens rely on us to keep them safe, and even small oversights can have big consequences.