• Created on 6/4/11 by CO-OP_COOP

Hi all! We have been visiting this website for over about 4 months.  Our names are Domenic and Traci.  We decided a long time ago that we really wanted some chickens.  We went out and purchased our first three chicks and had a terrible time with them.  we were completely unprepared and ended up haviing to give them away to a better home.  Now this time around we knew what to expect.  Traci talked me into trying ducks this time.  I have really come to enjoy them.  We have gotten alot of awesome info from this site and has come in very handy.  We purchased three little... read more

• Created on 6/4/11 by gertiie

This is my story. My kids all left me . Took my Grandkids with them ! I was devastated. So what better to fill the void of an empty nest, then a new nest full of chickens !! I fought with the husband for 3 weeks about getting a couple of chickens, building a small coop out of recycled materials I could gather up here and there and from around the community. I tell him I have $400.00 saved up for this project out of my own money. Finally, husband gets on board, comes up with his own design and plans, and thus begins our chicken adventure. April 15th, 2011. Day 1:  I... read more

• Created on 5/30/11 by tedennis

My Chicken Coop   I started with a precut 8x8 shed form menards. I was planning on building from scratch but when material was figured, it wasnt worth the trouble to cut everything myself. The time saved was definately worth the price difference.It was designed with floor joist at 24 inches on center. I bought 4 extra 2x4s and made it 12 inch on center. Definately worth it in the long run.I picked up the deck foundation blocks from the side of the road one day. Those are freebies. One mans trash is another mans treasure. Figured it was an easy way to get coop off the... read more

• Created on 5/27/11 by loubapache

Our Backyard Duck House / Pen In the spring of 2010, a neighbor of a co-worker saw two ducklings on the road so he rescued them and kept them in a plastic tote for a couple weeks in the garage but the ducklings grew so fast that the tote was too small.  The co-worker knew we have a couple ponds in the backyard so asked if we were interested in having the ducks.  We were just thinking about buying a couple ducklings from Tractor Supply Company so we, of course, said yes and adopted the ducklings as pets. We then built a duck house and an attached pen and here is a... read more

• Created on 5/26/11 by hannalice

After several months of plotting and wanting, I asked my landlords/bosses if I could set up a chicken coop 'round the back of the clinic/apartment where I live and work. The veterinarians I work for debated amongst themselves, and decided that no, I couldn't have a chicken coop 'round the back of the place, but I could have one up by the old, mostly abandoned barn on the property! Much, much more space to work with than what I was expecting. Excited!! I headed up the morning I got the news to take a look at the area. I'd seen it before, and knew it was filled with... read more

• Created on 5/26/11 by kichohana

 The Bjorklund's Chicken Adventure When we moved here on St. Patrick's Day in 2006 and my mother heard we had 1.1 acres, she said "you should get chickens".  She was born and raised on a farm and had chickens.  First I thought yes, chickens would be fun.   So we visited friends that have free-range chickens (a mini-farm on 5 acres) to see their set up.  Yes quickly changed to noooo after we visited and I saw the utter destruction of their landscape (they have about 5 dogs and 4 goats to contribute to the destruction).  I am a gardener first, so destruction of the yard... read more

• Created on 5/22/11 by marshallbrown

  Marshall Brown on Two Bear Acres     Our very first brooder box.                                       So, we decided to start raising chickens.................... Thanks to many of the posts on this site, we were able to come up with, what we think, is a pretty cool brooder box.  Our chicks arrive in a week and we wanted to be prepared. We took a large cardboard box ( 23"x35"), cut the sides down to 18" high, and fit a wood fram for a cover over the top. Then, we streched some metal screening over the frame and stapled it in place. Now we are... read more

• Created on 5/21/11 by Kuvasz

The Chicken Country Club Extreme Makeover!   began July 2010, complete (?) May 2011 This is our coop remodeling story.  Here is the finished (are coops ever really finished?) product.   We started with an old 8' x 16' shed used as a chicken and/or dog house by previous owners (below), but now falling in and unstable.  The 'door' wouldn't open.  Boards were rotting and falling off.  There were multiple bees' nests to deal with.  Weeds were overgrown in the fenced area.  There was only a dirt floor, no roosting poles, and one window covered with broken, rusted... read more

• Created on 5/15/11 by LittleFeat

  ~THE FEATHER FACTORY~  The summer of 2009 I decided to start on a new hobby and have some hens as "pets with perks"! To prevent overwhelming my neighbors and my ability, I ordered 5 day-old chicks from My Pet Chicken. I selected one each: Rhode Island Red (Amber), Black Australorp (Lilith), Silver Laced Wyandotte (Wynnie), Buff Orpington (Maisie), and an Easter Egger (Frisbee). The chicks were hatched on August 17 and my adventure began at the local post office two days later. I set them up in a crate in my garage and my husband and I started on the construction of... read more

• Created on 5/12/11 by latebloomer

  hi. at first i thought of doing an a-frame, it looked like this; i'm in north central vermont, many people commented that i really ought to plan on having more square footage for the chickens because they may have to stay inside the coop for days in the winter, 8-10 square foot per chicken was recommended i wasn't sure where to put my coop, i had three places i thought could work, here's my site plan.  the coop is at location A this is the start of my coop page.  it's base is four solid core wood doors on 4x4's over concrete blocks.  i didn't want to get a... read more