- Mar 28, 2014
- 153
- 17
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Thanks for the reply: I tested pine pellets in the coop. The hens did peck at them in the beginning, never ate them, just cracked them in half. I don't think they liked the smell or taste.
Coop screws: That is the way to go, now why didn't I think of that? Just the same, in order to be certain unwanted animals could not dig under the coop and get inside; I made a wood frame (my son cut the sides and ends for me naturally) the same size as the coop. I got the small square fencing and stretched it across the frame. That was when I used U shaped nails to fix the screen to the frame. I put the frame on level ground and placed my sand/pdz/de/top soil mix over the exposed screen. I used 2x4's. To finish that off, I leveled the dirt 4", and then placed the coop directly over the frame. I got angle brackets and some strait and "SCREWED" them to hold the coop to the frame so it would not slide off. To be certain the whole coop stayed in place I got some wide flat stakes (used in the garden to hold boarder bricks in place) and drove one each on the ends and three each on the long sides, into the firm soil.
We have foxes, moles, cats, etc. They can't get into the hen house. Thought I'd share that with you: Sorry for the lengthy rant!
Coop screws: That is the way to go, now why didn't I think of that? Just the same, in order to be certain unwanted animals could not dig under the coop and get inside; I made a wood frame (my son cut the sides and ends for me naturally) the same size as the coop. I got the small square fencing and stretched it across the frame. That was when I used U shaped nails to fix the screen to the frame. I put the frame on level ground and placed my sand/pdz/de/top soil mix over the exposed screen. I used 2x4's. To finish that off, I leveled the dirt 4", and then placed the coop directly over the frame. I got angle brackets and some strait and "SCREWED" them to hold the coop to the frame so it would not slide off. To be certain the whole coop stayed in place I got some wide flat stakes (used in the garden to hold boarder bricks in place) and drove one each on the ends and three each on the long sides, into the firm soil.
We have foxes, moles, cats, etc. They can't get into the hen house. Thought I'd share that with you: Sorry for the lengthy rant!