Electric Fencing Kits for Poultry Protection

Flyte so Fancy Chicken Paddock

Last week I wrote with some sadness how a recent power cut in our poultry paddock, let a fox break through our electric fence and attack our beloved cockerel, Sergeant Speckles. As many of you know, and thank you for the kind words we have received, Sergeant Speckles didn't make it and upon the power being turned back on and our electric fence running at full power once again, our poultry paddock is fully guarded.

Foxes are becoming increasingly brazen in what they will do for a tasty meal of our beloved feathered friends. Both country foxes and their urban brothers are becoming more prevalent during the day and with cubbing season happening at the moment, the hungry mouths to feed at home only make them bolder.

With this rise in fox activity it is an ideal time to check that your current electric fence is in tip-top order. A little electric fence tester, like the audible key ring tester from Hotline, is a quick and easy way to tell you if your fence has power in it. Equally, the slightly more advanced LED fence tester will show you if you have 1,000 or 10,000 volts running through your netting. An electric net will ideally be running with around 3,000 volts passing through it. Handy ways to make sure your electric fence keeps Mr Fox at bay.

New into Flyte so Fancy for 2015 are the Gated Netting Kits, coming in lengths of 25m or 50m. These kits contain everything you need, from corner posts, an earth stake and an energiser to keep your hens safe from predators. The dual power energiser in this kit allows for the poultry netting to be run off either mains power or through a battery, which gives great versatility in how you use the net.

The new Gated Netting Kits also come with a separate Hot-Gate system to allow access into the pen. This means even if you are using your net in a straight line, as opposed to a circle or square, to block off the end of a garden, you can still put the gate into one end of the netting, to give you easy access into your hens. A very handy feature.

Electric Netting Kits for Chickens

Electric fencing is a great way to keep both your poultry safe and predators out. With the occasional checks and maintenance, and as long as you keep the net clear of surrounding vegetation and over-grown grass which will sap its power, electric fencing forms an effective barrier against foxes.

Here at Flyte so Fancy we have had an electric fencing system protecting our precious girls and boys down in the chicken field for well over 7 years and it wasn't until a power cut a week ago, that we had our first major fox incursion into our chicken field.

Electric fencing is a superb way to keep your girls safe while giving them some extra room to stretch their feathers. If you have any questions about electric fencing you can speak to a member of our team on 01300 345229 or leave a comment below.


Thank for Reading
James

A Month at Flyte So Fancy

Let me first of all apologise that it has been a month since the Flyte so Fancy Chicken Blog sat down to write about the goings on here at FSF HQ, tell you of new innovative products or try to give advise regarding the everyday concerns of chicken keepers.

You see, what happened was every time I sat down something came along to distract me. I hid in the poultry feed store for privacy. I took my laptop down to the chicken field in an attempt at peace. I even hid under the shop counter in an attempt to blog about my favourite items in the shop. All failed.

However, I suddenly find myself free from the avalanche of paper work that was on my desk, the sun shining and a general feeling of the dolce vita settling over the surrounding hills of Dorset. It has been a busy month here a Flyte so Fancy.

FSF Chicks Hatched in 2014

Firstly with Easter on the way there was a spectacular deal on 5kg Wise Feeders in our Easter Extravaganza Email. This brilliant little poultry feeder is a great way to cut down on feed waste from hens who like to throw their feed about and also due to it being able to be mounted at chicken head height, it also stops vermin being attracted to your girls food.

Then there was the launching of our 2015 Catalogue in March. I have been sealing envelopes and licking stamps ever since due to the popularity of our little book of everything you need for happy hens.

Equally exciting was the hatching of our first chick of the year. I absolutely love this time of year and with several broody hens all sitting on Gold Laced Hamburg eggs (the bosses favourite) we're hoping it wont be long till we are ankle deep in cute chicks.

It is with sad news that I have to end this weeks blog, during a recent power cut as dusk was setting in and just before we normally head down to shut our hens up for the night, a fox managed to slip through our temporarily de-electrified net and wreak havoc in our chicken field. It is with sadness that I have to report that our beloved rooster Sergeant Speckles was a victim of Mr Fox.

Sergeant Speckles

With the power restored and our electric fence now working at full capacity, we have conducted a full system check of the whole fence, and gone over it with a fine tooth comb to check that when the fox broke through the de-powered net, he didn't cause more permanent damage.

If you have an electric fence make sure that over grown grass or vegetation is not in contact with the net. This will drain the power right out of your net and leave it weak and ineffectual against predators. Finally make sure that there is no way a fox can jump over the top of your net. Foxes are great climbers, so if they can climb up on top of a bin for example and then jump over your net, they will.

Our hens are once again safe. A sad and unfortunate incident and some thing to bear in mind if your electric fence runs off the mains power supply.

As always here at Flyte so Fancy we are happy to talk about all things chickens so if you have a question for us why not email on info@flytesofancy.co.uk or call a member of our team on 01300 345229.


Thanks for Reading
James