The Leghorn's greatest strength as a layer, her restless energy, is also her predator problem. This slim Mediterranean breed flies better than most chickens, ranges further from the coop than heavier hens, and will happily roost in a tree or on a roof if the coop routine slips. Every one of those habits moves a Leghorn away from protection and into the path of something hunting. Keeping Leghorns safe means designing housing that contains a bird determined to be elsewhere, and locking down the hours when she cannot protect herself at all.
A predator list shaped by the Leghorn's habits
By day the Leghorn's wide ranging exposes her to hawks, which pick off hens scratching in open ground far from cover, and to foxes that learn a free-ranging flock's routine quickly. At night, a bird roosting in a tree is an easy meal for an owl or a climbing raccoon. Inside the coop, raccoons remain the classic enemy, forcing latches and reaching through wide mesh, while weasels and mink pass through gaps around doors and floors that a hen keeper barely notices. Rats drawn to spilled feed and uncollected eggs will take chicks and young pullets.
A coop sealed against small, clever hands
Build the Leghorn coop tight. Cover vents, windows, and the gap under the eaves with small-mesh welded wire fixed into solid timber, since a weasel needs only a narrow opening and a raccoon will pull at any loose edge until it gives. Use latches that require two separate movements, set high enough that children and raccoons alike are discouraged. Inspect the floor and the corners where the walls meet it, because rot at ground level opens the first hidden doorway. Provide high roosts inside the coop so the flock's instinct to sleep elevated is satisfied under a roof; a Leghorn that finds a good indoor roost is far less tempted by the tree outside. Shut and latch the pop door every night, even in fine weather.
A covered run that turns flight into an asset
Because Leghorns fly, an open-topped pen is a suggestion rather than a boundary. Roof the run with netting or wire so the flock can flutter, scratch, and dust-bathe inside a space hawks cannot dive into and hens cannot sail out of. If you offer range time beyond the run, keep it to periods when you are nearby, and train the flock to return to a scattered feed call so recall is instant. Young pullets need the closest watching of all: slim, curious, and light enough for more predators to carry, they belong in the covered run until they are full-sized and flock-wise.
Daily habits that keep a laying flock uninteresting to hunters
Collect eggs every day, because a coop full of eggs and spilled feed advertises itself to rats, raccoons, and snakes all night. Do a headcount on the roosts after dark with a torch; a missing Leghorn is most findable in the first hour, usually wedged in a hedge or shut in a shed. Watch for the flock's own alarms: sudden silence, every head up and staring one way, or feathers scattered in a corner of the run all deserve a same-day inspection of wire, latches, and rooflines. Treat any hen found with puncture wounds or a torn crop to prompt veterinary attention, since attacks that a light bird survives often leave injuries that worsen quietly.
A Leghorn behind mesh, under a roofed run, and counted onto her roost each night loses none of her famous industry and gives up only her dangerous freedom. If one determined hen still clears the wire and disappears into neighbouring gardens, KinsLe's Lost Pet Alert System lets you alert nearby Circle of Love members through KinsLe and lets the finder message you directly.