Finally met my predator match. Need help.

[nevrenufanimals]

I have been reading tons of articles about racoons getting into coops and the damage they do. I have an enclosed coop/run built with wood and hardware cloth for my hens, and then an additional covered 24 ft x 13ft run attached to that with an automatic pop door for access. The run is only made with chicken wire all the way up to the roof, intended mainly to keep the chickens in during the day. They are locked into the coop at night. I am making plans to divide out an area of the run to make a rooster pen because i have been given 12 unsexed chicks. The hubs wants to just add the inside divider wall and door made again with chicken wire. We will most likely add some sort of walls on the end where we will put roosts for additional wind and rain protection, but overall it will be more of an open air coop for those boys I cant give away. I am wondering in anyone's experience, how high up do coons usually tear through the wire? Could a 3 ft row of hardware cloth along the bottom prevent them from tearing through? the smaller HC is just so freakin expensive and I've got a LOT of area to cover.

 

[Molpet]

I have been reading tons of articles about racoons getting into coops and the damage they do. I have an enclosed coop/run built with wood and hardware cloth for my hens, and then an additional covered 24 ft x 13ft run attached to that with an automatic pop door for access. The run is only made with chicken wire all the way up to the roof, intended mainly to keep the chickens in during the day. They are locked into the coop at night. I am making plans to divide out an area of the run to make a rooster pen because i have been given 12 unsexed chicks. The hubs wants to just add the inside divider wall and door made again with chicken wire. We will most likely add some sort of walls on the end where we will put roosts for additional wind and rain protection, but overall it will be more of an open air coop for those boys I cant give away. I am wondering in anyone's experience, how high up do coons usually tear through the wire? Could a 3 ft row of hardware cloth along the bottom prevent them from tearing through? the smaller HC is just so freakin expensive and I've got a LOT of area to cover.

I have had raccoon footprint on top of the coop.
Friend had them go through the top covered with it
They tore open the rotten eves on my old house and had a litter in the attic. They were going up the rain gutters downspout.

Mink and weasels can get through any hole bigger than a half inch. I had poultry for years before they started killing.