I am thinking I need to make a larger run for my chickens. I have 5 chickens. Currently, my run is about 10'x17' with a 4'x8' cook in it and chickens have access to underneath and have actually dug out a large crater underneath. I had been letting them out into the yard every day. However, last fall, neighbor's dog got into my fenced yard, then into my run and killed my elder, retired hen while she was under the coop. My practice was that I'd go out in the morning, open the run door, let the chickens free range and at night, I'd go and close the run door. (I had one loss in over 12 years of doing it this way, and that was literally a loss - the hen just disappeared, no feathers or anything, just gone).
Apologies a $20 Tractor Supply Company gift card and neighbors promised that they'd keep a better eye on their dog, they reinforced their fence, though they don't know where it's breaching. The fence is about 3-4 feet with bushes in front of most of it. Neither of us had seen how it got out of their fence and into mine. Devil dog came back and was running around my yard with a mouth full of feathers. My chicken did seem to be uninjured otherwise.
So obviously, I cannot trust them to keep their dog contained so, I was thinking of creating a fenced free range area. Sort of putting a fence of some sort across the back corner of my yard and my coop and run would be inside of it.
I'm not looking for permanent, as we will be moving within the next 5 years. It would be about 100 feet. I like inexpensive and would like to see them. Any suggestions?
Apologies a $20 Tractor Supply Company gift card and neighbors promised that they'd keep a better eye on their dog, they reinforced their fence, though they don't know where it's breaching. The fence is about 3-4 feet with bushes in front of most of it. Neither of us had seen how it got out of their fence and into mine. Devil dog came back and was running around my yard with a mouth full of feathers. My chicken did seem to be uninjured otherwise.
So obviously, I cannot trust them to keep their dog contained so, I was thinking of creating a fenced free range area. Sort of putting a fence of some sort across the back corner of my yard and my coop and run would be inside of it.
I'm not looking for permanent, as we will be moving within the next 5 years. It would be about 100 feet. I like inexpensive and would like to see them. Any suggestions?