andy9196 Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Having taken delivery of 6 ex batts and a cube, the family are over the moon on how the girls have settled in, eating well, laying and acting like real chickens ! Even the neighbours go down to see how they are doing. The dilemma is that i am fortunate to live right in the countryside in a barn conversion, we have a play area (quite large) which the kids play in and the girls are housed there at present. the problem is that there it is not clearly visable form our kitchen window and with the numerous topics on foxes we are determined to keep the girls out of harms way. So we have a paddock which we can move them to, but is it best to have an electric fence so that they can free range during the day when we are out, or a coop with a large area that the normal cube 2m. Obviously when we are about we would let the girls roam around freely, but it is when we are not about concerns me. Hopefully I can utilise your knowledge. many thanks . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 I don't have experience of an electric fence or a walk in run (so should perhaps just shut up now ) but in your situation I would feel happier with a walk in run. An electric fence might not be 100% effective - what if the battery failed or you had a desperate fox with a high pain threshold . In addition, birds of prey have been known to attack chickens - they'd not be safe from that within an electric fence. Hopefully some people with real experience will be along soon - just thought I'd give you my tuppence worth! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gamebird Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 I appreciate ANH's concerns but my chickens have lived within a 50m rectangle of electric fencing for the past 6 months with no mishaps or fox attacks. They free range all day within this perimeter and I don't lock them in at night. I live in the country and know that foxes wonder within close proximity to the enclosure (fox poo everywhere). Foxes will always try a fence before venturing over and once they have been stung they will not try again. The fencing has to be well maintained and kept on 24/7 so the fox never has an opportunity to test an unelectrified fence. Read this and and this for further reading on electric fencing set-up. My enclosure looks like this Good luck with whatever you decide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 *sigh* Your setup is so lovely . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larkspurs Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Yep it's lovely...I wish I had that much land...you lucky so and so! Interesting notes about electric fencing, we haven't done any of that yet. Gamebird, thanks for the links, very informative! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Speckled Hen Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 I appreciate ANH's concerns but my chickens have lived within a 50m rectangle of electric fencing for the past 6 months with no mishaps or fox attacks. They free range all day within this perimeter and I don't lock them in at night. My enclosure looks like this Hi Gamebird. How high is your electric fencing? I've thought along these lines but have also been considering a 2m fence with an outward overhang and no electrification. Thanks Dani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livvyshens Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 Just going back to Andy's question - I chose electric fencing because I wanted to be able to move it round the garden. It's been very successful in the 4 months I've had it at repelling the fox but when I first got it it was very tiresome to get right (uneven ground, etc.) and I really wished I had gone for for a covered run. Covered run seems to me more expensive to buy/build but cheaper in the long run taking in to account electricity costs and new batteries. On balance I prefer being able to dismantle the run and move it where I want. Safety wise I can't see any difference. And I should mention the advantage of being able to move it away from rat holes but then again you can always put the run on slabs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..lay a little egg for me Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 Hi all...I'm the other electric fence fan...you will see my contributions on the links Gamebird has posted! I just wanted to add that we have found the fence really brilliant this winter as we have been able to move the girls around the garden so their area does not get muddy and also so they can do their brilliant job of raking the grass . We had them in the 'orchard' all summer but in the autumn we moved them to the other end of the garden and arranged it so the electric fenced area included the vegetable patch, where they have done a great job of raking the soil and fertilizing it . It was getting a bit muddy in one corner of the area where the ground was waterlogged due to our neighbour's horse water trough leaking, so we moved them into the back garden where they are, hopefully, scratching up all the weeds from the lawn. In another few weeks we will move them back to the orchard for the summer. So far (we have had the girls 9 months) we have not had any trouble with foxes, dogs etc and the girls have never attempted to get over the fence. In fact, we can clearly see that they don't get too near the fence as there is a green, 'unscratched/unpecked' strip all along the fence. I think that electric fences are great and give the girls much more room than a walk-in run ever could, but if you don't have a large garden (which we are lucky to do) then you might not have enough space to ensure they don't trash the grass, so a walk in run might well be a better option. Of course, people have had foxes get into their walk in runs and one omleteer has had a fox get through the electric fence (I think this was strands of electric wire not the netting though), so one can never keep the girls 100% safe. Sorry for the long rambling reply! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy9196 Posted January 29, 2009 Author Share Posted January 29, 2009 Many thanks for all your pearls of wisdom. I think that the electric fence will be more suitable as we will be able to move it around the paddock. Many thanks again, anyone know where the best place to buy them from. Also as we have no mains electric, is it best to get a couple of batteries, one on charge and the other one working ? Cheers Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gamebird Posted January 29, 2009 Share Posted January 29, 2009 DA, my electric fencing is about 3'7" high which is the same as most poultry netting. I bought my netting from Solway Feeders. This particular netting is meant to be used in a circuit and has connectors at the access opening. I also bought some extra poles to stop the fencing from sagging. I have one battery on charge and another in use and that way I can ensure that the fencing is always electrified. I also bought an Indicator Light Tube which tells me that the fencing is working efficiently enough to deter wildlife. I bought my energiser (a Hotline Hobby) locally from Scats. All in all, the electric fencing set-up turned out cheaper than a walk in run (I would have to have bought one - we're a hard working but not very handy household!). The free ranging area is larger and I can move it when necessary. Another bonus is that I don't have any problems with rats. Obviously wild birds have access which is why I regularly treat the chickens with Xeno 200 to guard against mites, lice, worms etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livvyshens Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 If you are buying bits and peices from different places rather than a kit I notice that www.UKcountrystore.co.uk are doing 25m nets at around £50 and 50m nets at £72.50. Carriage is around £6 from memory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..lay a little egg for me Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 I got my fence as a kit with the netting, energizer and earth spike from http://www.farmcareuk.com It came to £165 inc postage. I got a couple of old car batteries for £20 from a local salvage yard. I also recently bought some extra posts from Flytes of Fancy (for about £20 I think it was) as the fence really does need extra supports. The Omlet netting already comes with the extra posts, so that is worth bearing in mind when pricing up your options. Like Gamebird, I also invested in a fence tester for peace of mind. Remember that, if you don't get your energiser as part of a kit with the netting, you will need to get one that is suitable for netting. Most of the energisers on the market are designed for single strand electric wire or electric tape. The netting needs a more powerful energiser to ensure all strands are delivering a high enough voltage to deter the fox. You also need to check regularly that nothing is shorting out the fence (long grass, dead frogs, low hanging branches touching the fence will do it). In the summer, the grass at the base of the fence needs trimming regularly. Any more questions, I (and Gamebird too I'm sure) will be happy to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minnie&Moose Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 We have also gone down the electrified poultry netting route rather than a large, permanent run. It's been up since October and has been brilliant - plenty of evidence of fox around the perimeter and around the rest of the garden but no problems with the chickens so far. Best birthday present I've had in a long time! As Gamebird suggests, definitely have a second battery so that you don't have any periods when the fence isn't electrified. We didn't do this originally and the verbal abuse we got from the chickens when they realised they were confined to barracks for 24 hours during recharging could be heard by my son in his school playground at the bottom of our garden Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gamebird Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 Remember that, if you don't get your energiser as part of a kit with the netting, you will need to get one that is suitable for netting. Most of the energisers on the market are designed for single strand electric wire or electric tape. The netting needs a more powerful energiser to ensure all strands are delivering a high enough voltage to deter the fox. Good point Caroline. It really is worth doing your homework thoroughly and then hopefully (touches wood) you can enjoy fox free chicken keeping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronze Posted January 30, 2009 Share Posted January 30, 2009 In your position (havign a paddock) I would go for the electric fence as you could give them loads of room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
