Retriever dog kennel run or Amazon chicken run?

[Raubkatze]

Does the frame seem sturdy? We will need to strengthen for snow as well. I ordered two of the 13ft ones to put back to back so we have 26 feet and 2 doors. We plan to put the coop on one side and block off a clean area to get eggs and for us to come and go without the chickens escaping.

So far so good. We have had two big thunderstorms and a snow storm since we put it up and it hasn't budged, but we also have it anchored down with cement pavers around the inside and outside as well as hardware cloth along the bottom perimeter which I am sure also adds weight. The wind comes for the left of this picture (this was our halfway point, I need to take an updated photo), and while there is an apple orchard there, behind the apple orchard is a 20 acre field with nothing in it right now.

 

[Sono]

After our coop project the last few days, my husband has made it very clear that he is DONE with DIY for a while. I'm now looking for a more ready to go and less build from scratch solution for our run.

Does anybody use the Retriever dog kennel as a chicken run? I would plan to put a tarp across the top for weather protection, but do I need to reinforce the actual run itself more, or are the metal bars enough to keep chickens in and predators out? https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...jCd6WlV6BLOpUloD2UIeGNUf3GHPVko4aAmUTEALw_wcB

The other option I am looking at is this run from Amazon. I worry about snow load in my area causing it to collapse, but other than adding tarps for more weather protection it looks fairly ready to go out of the box. https://a.co/d/5dfAfgk

I know none of these options are as great as build ourselves. Eventually we would upgrade, but for now I just need *something* that will keep my chickens safe while also not causing a ton of extra work until tempers cool down.

Dog run would be more sturdy but youll need to add wire over it to keep them safe. The Tractor supply and amazon stuff will fall apart within a year and are ungodly expensive.

 

[Raubkatze]

Dog run would be more sturdy but youll need to add wire over it to keep them safe. The Tractor supply and amazon stuff will fall apart within a year and are ungodly expensive.

Well, it just survived 80 mph wind gusts during one the scariest thunderstorms I have seen in a long time. I'm happy with my purchase.

 

[Appalachickens]

After our coop project the last few days, my husband has made it very clear that he is DONE with DIY for a while. I'm now looking for a more ready to go and less build from scratch solution for our run.

Does anybody use the Retriever dog kennel as a chicken run? I would plan to put a tarp across the top for weather protection, but do I need to reinforce the actual run itself more, or are the metal bars enough to keep chickens in and predators out? https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...jCd6WlV6BLOpUloD2UIeGNUf3GHPVko4aAmUTEALw_wcB

The other option I am looking at is this run from Amazon. I worry about snow load in my area causing it to collapse, but other than adding tarps for more weather protection it looks fairly ready to go out of the box. https://a.co/d/5dfAfgk

I know none of these options are as great as build ourselves. Eventually we would upgrade, but for now I just need *something* that will keep my chickens safe while also not causing a ton of extra work until tempers cool down.

I don’t have an answer but boy can I related! We’ve been in a protracted coop/run build and my husband is about over it. I wanted to add a covered area and he felt it was unnecessary extra work, so I ended up just doing that on my own. And it was not easy! There are times when I wish we’d bought a dog kennel for the run.