Deterring chickens from certain areas

[bakerjw]

You may try some deer or bird netting. They really dislike getting tangled up in it.

Two weekends ago 7 of the 8 girls decided to make a break for it over the 4' fence of their chicken run. Deer netting was in order. Last weekend Miss Friendly aka Mrs. Houdini decided that she could surely force her way through this new black veil over the lower end of the fence. My son and I watched as she looked up gauging the distance. She then waddled back and forth a bit before jumping with all her might while flapping her wings. She went smack dab in the middle of the net where she became lightly entangled. The hilarity of her half caught flapping and squawking like crazy as she fought to free herself had my son and I literally rolling on the ground. She got loose and made a bee line to the back of the run.

The stuff I bought came from TSC and was $20.00 for a 7 1/2' x100' roll. It is pretty tough.

 

[gryeyes]

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I use bird netting over my run, too. I bought mine in a roll 14 ft wide by 50 ft long... same price. It IS tough stuff!

My EE rooster got panicked one day when he was outside of the run and flapped/flew up over the fence to get back into the run. Landed on the netting, bounced and/or jumped three times before he got too entangled to move. And he's a big rooster! I had to go into the run and tear the netting apart with my hands where he was stuck to let him fall to the ground. Then I just zip-tied the tear closed (a little bit later).

I use a few six foot green garden stakes to prop up the sag in the middle of the netting spans across the run so I can walk under it. Just stick 'em into the ground and prop up the netting so it's more tent-like.

 

[Sunshyne276]

Bird netting/deer netting! It's really the one way I know of. You can use bamboo stakes as posts, and either make a temporary "fence" around the garden beds, or use it to make a temp fence to keep them in one spot.

Right now, I use it as a temp fence, to keep them in the back of my property (most of my plants are in the front), and it works fairly well.
There is one hen that always find her way on the other side. lol But the rest stay in the back, for the most part.

....Had several of my Hostas eaten down to the ground....so I *know* the frustration!!

lol

 

[lhousesoccer]

Just a bit of an update. A day or two after making the original post, I looked out the window, and the chickens were in the shrub garden scratching the mulch again. I went running out the porch, and on the steps just happened to be my son's Super Soaker, and it was filled. I grabbed it on the way down and started firing. Chickens flew in all directions. The next day - same thing. I got a couple real good. Did you know chickens don't like to be wet? Anyways, that was 2 weeks ago or more, and they haven't been back in the garden since!

 

[noodleroo]

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Reminds me of a funny story. Some years ago one of my friends and her husband lived in a very nice area of Rockport, an island called 'Key Allegro'. Most of the houses are on channels that open to the bay. They loved the mallards that made the channels home, but the poop when they congregated on the back sidewalk---nnnot so much. So, they called Texas Parks and Wildlife to see what could be done; they didn't want the ducks removed, just didn't want them on the back sidewalk. A Game Warden came out, assessed the problem, left and came back with the perfect solution; a gill net that he had confiscated. Now for those of you that aren't familiar with what that is, its a monofilament net that's made to catch fish by their gills, in the water of course. They are illegal as a fishing tool in Texas. Strung behind the house it made a perfect little barrier to keep the ducks at a distance. Problem solved, right? NOOOOOO!

The next day, she had a knock on the door, opened it and it was a virtual 'gaggle' of Game Wardens with very stern faces. She said "can I help you". One of the wardens said "you have in your possession an illegal gill net and we are confiscating it". She said "Don't you people ever talk to each other....". True story... LOL

 

[Reeny1226]

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Land mines come to mind.

LOL!! that made me laugh!