Chicken picking at feet

[tania]

Advice needed as to which you all think may be best.

I think that I'm going to have to give the girls a fenced area which will/can be moved when I want (although I haven't quite decided if I'll just put them in one area permanently)

Which is best : Omlet netting with foxwatch, do you know how big an area I can fence off with this, or Omlet netting that's electrified. I want to stop foxes & dogs getting in. It'll only be used in the day not at night, when they'll be in their Eglu. Thanks

[Tweety]

Electric fencing is definitely the safest bet.

[Sheilaz]

Yes, if I were starting out I'd definitely get electric fencing.

A Foxwatch is a great deterrent but won't completely stop a fox if it's desperate.

I now have 2 Foxwatches (1 kept it at bay for a while, 2 and it hasn't been back) and a Fort Knox weldmesh run, but I believe an electric fence is far greater protection than just a Foxwatch and netting.

[Egluntyne]

I agree.

 

My Foxwatch worked very well. Until I dropped it on a paving slab. *tuts*

[Gamebird]

Definitely electric fencing. See this thread for more info.

 

However, I would emphasise that if you have electric fencing then you must leave it on the whole time and not just during the day. If the fencing is turned off and a fox tests it and does not get a shock he will be confident to jump the fencing whether it is on or off. In other words to deter foxes he has to get a shock every time he touches it.

 

I have kept my chickens behind electric fencing since last June and they have been completely safe even though I have seen foxes circling the netting. But I do keep it electrified 24/7.

[..lay a little egg for me]

Another vote for electric fencing here. Not only does it keep the foxes out, but also keeps out rats, mink, badgers etc too, and may put off two-legged predators and the girls get their own bit of garden meaning you don't have to look out for poos as soon as you step out of the house.

[tania]

out of interest, do you leave the chickens out in the electrified area all the time, when you're not there and at night?

[Gamebird]

I don't lock mine away at night so they are free to get up in the morning whenever they want and they put themselves to bed.

 

I leave the fencing on the whole time.

 

I too have badgers and mink wandering around and it keeps them at bay as well. For me it's a stress free way of keeping chickens.

[livvyshens]

Don't you worry about rats, Gamebird? That's what always puts me off leaving the pop hole open.

 

Tania - I vote for electric fencing, too.

[..lay a little egg for me]

No rats if the fence is correctly put together and is far enough away from their hidey holes that they don't tunnel in. We have not had any problem with rats. We do shut them in the attached run overnight unlike Gamebird (if I read the post correctly). That gives added security if, for any reason, the fox decided to jump over the fence despite the zap.

[livvyshens]

Not sure what you mean by correctly putting together the electric fence. Rats can of course get through the holes and are not put off by the current - well, they are happy to chew through electric cables aren't they. We had a rat epidemic for a few weeks in the cold weather and at dusk I could see the odd young one zipping through the fence and into the run. The thought of them running into the coop has made me keep the door slammed shut at night.

[..lay a little egg for me]

Hmm, you saw them zipping through the electric fence when it was on? oh dear. I assumed they would try to go under it and squeeze under the bottom non-electrified strand if the fence was not close enough to the ground and/or there was not sufficient current due to earthing.

 

We have rats living in the muck heap, which there is no point doing anything about as we are in the middle of the countryside. The muck heap is a good 50m from the house so I don't worry about it. However, it is not far from the chickens' summer area. I did not see any evidence of rats getting through the fence last summer. I did, however, find a dead frog that was shorting out the fence...the current must have been too much for it.

[..lay a little egg for me]

Just found this info on the smallholder website:

The optional extra close netting gives extra protection for your bantams or for younger birds. This has vertical strands which are just 7cm apart, making it hard for even pine marten to pass through without effect. This is the netting we advise for people with mink and other small predator problems. It is also surprisingly effective against rats.

 

So perhaps it depends on the set up you have...i.e., the size of the holes and the strength of the energiser etc etc, or perhaps the determination of the rats!

[Gamebird]

Don't you worry about rats, Gamebird? That's what always puts me off leaving the pop hole open.

 

Tania - I vote for electric fencing, too.

 

I don't seem to have any problems with rats. The electric fencing probably keeps them away as well as the other wildlife.

[Gamebird]

Not sure what you mean by correctly putting together the electric fence. Rats can of course get through the holes and are not put off by the current - well, they are happy to chew through electric cables aren't they. We had a rat epidemic for a few weeks in the cold weather and at dusk I could see the odd young one zipping through the fence and into the run. The thought of them running into the coop has made me keep the door slammed shut at night.

 

The bottom of my fencing has very small holes so even a rat would get a nasty shock if it tried and I have a powerful energiser (strong enough to power 100m of electric fencing).

[..lay a little egg for me]

I think that's the key Gamebird. Small holes and a big enough energiser. Unfortunately some of the kits that are sold do not have a powerful enough energiser or if the items are bought separately the customer is not told/not aware that energisers for horse tape is not enough for a net.

 

Our local farm shop has their hens behind several strands of electric wire but because there are no vertical strands they have had a fox get between the two strands once and, of course, rats will have no problem. Like you, I think the poultry netting is the way to go!

 

PS How was the birthday lunch?