Top Tips For Building Poultry Runs
Posted: Wednesday, September 01, 2010
by Mike Klassen
http://www.chickencoopanswers.com
Most people who get involved in raising chickens spend a lot of time planning the coop and then put a huge amount of time and effort into building the coop. They carefully build nesting boxes, roosts and make sure there is enough space for the food and water.
One thing that often gets over looked is a space for a poultry run. Chickens have the natural urge to scratch around and forage for food. There are two options when it comes to letting chickens out of their coop. The first thing that can be done is to let the chickens out of the coop and let them run free around the yard. They will generally not wander too far from the safety of the coop. The one disadvantage to this is that it leaves the flock open to attacks by predators.
A run should be the right size for the flock. As a general rule 8-10 sq.ft per bird should be used. The run should also have wire surrounding it. This can be either standard chicken wire or stucco wire secured to fence posts with fencing staples. The wire should be high enough to keep predators from leaping over it - five feet or higher should be sufficient.
As a trick to keep predators from digging under the wire, bend the wire 90 degrees at the bottom and extend it out 3-4 feet. Bury the wire several inches under the ground.
The ground in the coop should be a gritty sand. Chickens will appreciate the grit to help them digest their food. Chickens will also use the sand to bath themselves to keep mites and other parasites at bay. The sand will also have the added benefit of keeping the run clean, rather than having it turn into a big muck puddle when it rains.
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