PawGiant Chicken Coop Chicken Run Pen for Yard with Cover 130"×40"×40" Outdoor Metal Portable Chicken Tractor Cage Enclosure Crate Outside for Small Animals Duck Rabbit Hen

Recently, my wife began raising chickens and decided they needed a "Run Pen" to use during the day. After searching through many ads for these, she decided on the PawGiant Chicken Coop Chicken Run Pen for Yard with Cover. It is over 10' long and nearly 3.5' tall and nearly 3.5' wide and has multiple access "doors". The package was well designed with the Run coming in four basic parts. After watching a video on building the Run, I assembled it by myself in under an hour (the time included adding and trimming many zip ties). It comes with stakes to tie it down and an excellent waterproof section of roof. We can easily (carefully) move the Run to any area of the yard we desire. But, to be honest, my only complaint is the cage is very flimsy. It will hold our 7 chickens (they love being in it), but should anything bump it, it will easily bend. The price was about right for this product.

We're using this to move around the yard for 6 chickens so they don't keep scratching up the same spot all the time. It's pretty easy to move around once you have it all zip tied together, however, if you want to make it even more sturdy and last a little longer, I'd recommend thicker zip ties or maybe even wire. If you get enough zip ties on it, it adds a lot of strength. I have had to bend quite a few of the tabs that the pieces attach with a little to keep the other side from falling out, but that's not a big deal and a pair of pliers makes quick work of that. Our chickens love being able to explore a different area when we move it, so much that I may actually buy one more of these and set it side by side so the doors all line up and double the space. I'll build a wood frame to anchor it on to and just drag it around like a chicken tractor at that point, but it's worked great for what we have used it to do with just the one. Luckily there are lots of doors on it for getting the chickens back out. We have to use a broom to 'sweep' them to one side and grab them to put them back in their coop, but other than that, it's great (and all the doors make that not too big of a job anyway) So far, so good.

Construction is sturdy. Chickens try to roost on the round stabilizing bar and struggle to balance on it. Which is funny to watch but a little absurd. They have no interest in the roosting bars which are two super thin bars with a space between them. They don't see them as roosting options. You need to just stick a broom handle or something through the cage. Biggest problem is that if you put the roosting bar near the top, the raccoons can reach in from the top and get the chickens. Happened the first night we put them outside. Lost a chicken.

It is made of the same material as a large dog crate. Assembly was not as difficult as some commented on. It comes as three four-part panels (end, middle, end) and two side end panels and two support bars. Each panel has "clips" where another is attached to it. There are plenty of zip ties and the instructions indicate where to put them. "S" carabiners (5) are for locking the doors. There are u shaped stakes to anchor it to the ground and the tarp. The side end panels are clipped to each end using zip ties to secure in place, then connect the end panels to the middle panel accordingly. This is where I had a little trouble as several clips were very tight. I show a picture (pic 1) of my plyers with material to keep from scratching the wire as I am squeezing hard to get a wire to slide into the clip. After slightly bending the wire (pic 2) I moved my material/plyers closer to the clip to gently squeeze the wire into the clip. The doors have a gravity lock and the "S" clip keeps the lock from being slid upward, to a point. The hooks need to be fatter as the lock can still be slid upward and all your critters can come on out to play! I was in church and received a text eight of my nine hens were out loose in the yard. Thankfully the hawks weren't around and they all were coaxed back into the run with grains. Shew! I have used some Velcro (non abrasive) to keep the doors secured while I find another solution. My last picture is of the whole set up. I wanted something that would not be an eye sore and I found it. However, it is so camouflaged sometimes I think the hens are out again! lol. We may put something to make it show up a little because we do not want hawks to think the hens are free as well! That may be in the future. The hens love the two support bars going across the middle. I love the door on the roof for easy access to toss in goodies. I have one back door butted up against the opening to a wire tunnel which leads to the main coop. I hope to order another one of these, remove two doors (maybe), and connect them at at 90 degree angle for more run space. To keep the weed eater from damaging it I have placed it on wide fence boards and will probably use 14" zip ties to attach the run to the boards vs the stakes provided into the ground. This will also keep them from digging out (sandy soil), or someone from digging in, whatever the case may be. I am very pleased with this item.

Not enough support on the back side of the cage, also too many places snakes could get into outside of the plastic coated chicken wire. So we covered with bird netting and if the backside of the a-frame had a pole in the middle it would have made it stronger. We are not finished so we can't turn in a picture. We added hog fencing on the back side for support and we added welded wire above that and then bird netting. Snakes go after chickens and after eggs, so do rats, and so do other animals that could slip into the cage. There is a gap under the door that snake, possums and rats can get in there. We will probably add metal to some of the cage where the nesting boxes of the cage above on roof. We put boards all the way around under the pipe foundation to keep snakes and possums and raccoons and rats from digging in under. We put wire all across the inside of the bottom, chickens dig out and scratch the dirt continuously.We attached this to the bottom boards. This makes the cage movable. We can attach to our tractor or a big lawnmower and can be pulled like a sled. All in all we have over 400.00 in the cage. We live around a forest and have had bears, coyotes, and a panther has been seen here in Florida. Something killed all of our guieneas and we put a baby monitor in the cage and the other part in the house so we can hear if the animals are disturbed during the night.