Will an aproned chicken tractor keep out weasels?

[Sunshine_Amy]

Hi everyone. I'm looking at a simple chicken tractor design (here) that has an open-bottom coop. I'm going to need to modify it, but I find the idea of not having a coop floor to clean (with roosts above the ground/grass) very appealing. The creator claims years of success with this coop, but clearly there is a degree of predator risk.

My question for you is, would an apron, jutting out 1' on all sides, foil not just diggers like foxes, but other predators like weasels? I'm assuming no, and that that they'd still need locking up within the tractor, but I can't help but ask.

For what it's worth, I live in New England. We have foxes, bobcats, small rats...

Thanks,
Amy

 

[rosemarythyme]

I believe (and I could be wrong) that weasels aren't much for digging, however they will follow rodents through their burrows, so the aim should be excluding rats and other burrowing rodents.

A 12" apron may or may not be wide enough to exclude a rat from getting in in 1 night, as I've seen a rat tunnel under my apron about that long.

 

[Devorah]

I believe (and I could be wrong) that weasels aren't much for digging, however they will follow rodents through their burrows, so the aim should be excluding rats and other burrowing rodents.

A 12" apron may or may not be wide enough to exclude a rat from getting in in 1 night, as I've seen a rat tunnel under my apron about that long.

Would your opinion be different if the question did not involve a chicken tractor but a predator-proof run? I’m about to embark on a renovation of our run and coop, and was planning to install a 12” 1/2 HWC skirt with landscaping stakes. Do you think it should be 24”?

 

[3KillerBs]

Would your opinion be different if the question did not involve a chicken tractor but a predator-proof run? I’m about to embark on a renovation of our run and coop, and was planning to install a 12” 1/2 HWC skirt with landscaping stakes. Do you think it should be 24”?

18-24" is what I usuallly see recommended.

Wide enough that the digging predator is firmly standing on wire when it's trying to dig rather than having the edge of the wire clearly visible to be undermined.

 

[aart]

Aprons on tractors can be tricky, makes the tractor harder to move and aprons will probably need to be pinned down at the edges. That is providing that the ground is flat where the tractor sits.

 

[MadGardener]

Is the nesting area floored? I keep my chickens in mobile coops behind electric poultry netting. Nearly half their poo is dropped beneath roosts overnight.

My coops were inherited along with the chickens themselves. Floored in 1/2" hardware cloth. The poop sticks and is a pain to clean (I like to refer to it as waffle stomping <.< >.>). Adding a cut up feed bag beneath the roost has helped.

How many chickens do you want to keep? I personally feel most tractors to be undersized. My coops are definitely crowded, but having them behind a 100' fence and letting them out at dawn really helps. No bullying issues after harvesting 1 problem hen.

I'm not sure if you've considered electric netting. It definitely makes tunneling predators have to go farther.

 

[MadGardener]

Aprons on tractors can be tricky, makes the tractor harder to move and aprons will probably need to be pinned down at the edges. That is providing that the ground is flat where the tractor sits.

For sure! I guess hooks could be added to lift them for moving.

 

[Sunshine_Amy]

I believe (and I could be wrong) that weasels aren't much for digging, however they will follow rodents through their burrows, so the aim should be excluding rats and other burrowing rodents.

A 12" apron may or may not be wide enough to exclude a rat from getting in in 1 night, as I've seen a rat tunnel under my apron about that long.

@rosemarythyme That's helpful, thank you. Well this answer explains at least in part the strength of a mobile system. If a rat does decide to tunnel in, the problem is solved, in a sense, when the tractor is moved to a new location. Chicken poops are left behind, leaving interest outside of the coop, not just inside. And with an open bottom coop like above, they're not going to be able to nest in it.

@aart & @MadGardener, yes I don't relish the idea of including an apron, as it does seem a lot more work to move the tractor. I get that if it's not flat ground, it may become obvious to a predator that there's an ingress, still, it would slow them down at least, maybe enough for us to hear the chickens fussing. As far as pinning it up, yes, I was picturing the one I saw someone here mention and link to, I'm forgetting the creator's name, but it featured a smartly designed and inexpensive hinged apron, held up against the side wiring with dangling lawn staples, the same that can be put to use in pinning the apron down. Great system.

I've done some preliminary research into preventing rats (here), and it seems that an apron is one recommended deterrent. Rats can dig down by up to a meter, it says (!), but will be foiled if they are trying to dig at the location of the hardware cloth.

Editing my post, as I missed the last post from
@MadGardener. Waffle stomping, lol! Yeah, enclosing the bottom seems a pain, though I can understand while people do it. You make great points, I've been thinking about all these things a lot. Definitely most tractors seem on the small side, especially this one. I've been planning to get electronetting. I think combining that with the above tractor would be a great system, and I would skip the apron in that case. That would be way easier. Only thing is I'd need a net, which seems cumbersome to move, or some other deterrent for the numerous hawks around here. I'm beginning to lean towards a secured coop tractor with a larger run. I'm planning on six chickens.

 

[Krugerrand]

My concern is that the coop shown show zero ventilation. That's a major problem - unless you have a plant to alter it on build.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

My concern is that the coop shown show zero ventilation. That's a major problem - unless you have a plant to alter it on build.

i certainly would not pay for those plans. there are definitely better options here on BYC