[yorky]

When a hen roosts on a perch it likes to squat down so that its breast is resting on the perch. The perch needs to be at least 2" wide to enable it to do this.

[Aunt Sally]

http://www.backyardchickens.com/cgi-bin/faq/mojofaq.cgi?cat=103#mojo1

The Backyard Chickens Site says:

1" for bantams and 2" for regular sized hens.

[Lindeggs]

Thanks for that info everyone!    I will make sure my hens get nice, wide perches.

[boybrown]

I made mine 6 foot high and because foxes don't like soft netting used bird netting on the top. Returned the next day and a fox had happily scaled the fence, bit through the netting, killed all my girls and re-scaled the fence with one of my girls in its mouth. I now have a weldmesh roof with half of it covered with corrugated plastic sheeting. When the weather breaks I'm going to cover the other half as the difference between the two halves is considerable!