Coop recommendations?

[Buckbeak01]

Hey guys! I'm finally getting to move back to my home town where I'll be able to have chickens again! I want to get started ASAP and I'm looking for recommendations for your favorite coop and run for under $400. I've been looking on Amazon. I plan to have 6-8 chickens. Thank you!

 

[PD-Riverman]

Hey guys! I'm finally getting to move back to my home town where I'll be able to have chickens again! I want to get started ASAP and I'm looking for recommendations for your favorite coop and run for under $400. I've been looking on Amazon. I plan to have 6-8 chickens. Thank you!

Coop to me and others is different than it is to others. Coop to me and many others is a place for the chickens to go in and roost at night----come out the next morning at day break. Coop to some is a place the chickens stay in 24/7 unless they are let out to free range. What is a coop to you??

This pic is a example of 2 "coops" that will roost easy 15 chickens each, the nesting boxes are on the other side of the "coops" . These are 2, 10x10x6ft chain link dog kennels bought used---netting over the top---coops are free pallets with 2 pieces of used tin. I got $170 in both of these coops/pens/runs so that's $85 each and could house 30 chickens but prefer about 10 in each pen. I can walk in the pens, collect the eggs, reach into the coops and get chickens if needed. These are strong enough to keep dogs out and will last many, many years----maybe 30 or 40 years. Sure I could fancy up the coops with a few more dollars if they were close to my home. What do you mean by "coop"??

 

[Jiffyrocks]

You're going to find out that it's probably best to build one yourself.
All the coops that you buy prebuilt aren't always going to be that great. A lot are too small and when you get them bigger they get really pricey.
Not to mention, even the $600 one I was looking at still wasn't built correctly (they always have the roosts too low). So you'll have to modify them anyways. If you can't build one, find one that looks easy enough to fix.

 

[Buckbeak01]

I'm not very handy so I'm looking to purchase a coop (house for roosting and nesting boxes) with an attached run that will house 6-8 chickens. I plan to let them out daily to free range when I get home each afternoon. So I'm not looking to build my own I'm interested in what y'all have bought and used and if you liked it or not.

 

[Jiffyrocks]

Well I bought one from amazon. Was less than what you're wanting to spend, which is good cause it could only hold two chickens.
Here is the link I started with a pic of it.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1150189/do-i-need-to-cover-my-coop-window#post_18261160
I thought it was really cute and that it would work for me. As you can see, it got a lot of hate. I was going to stick with it and modify it as I went but the hatchery sent me an extra chick and since I originally was going to try and keep three in there- and now I had four, I knew I had to get something different.
So I ended up drawing up some plans- taking what I liked from this one, and changing what I didn't.
I can't really give any other recommendations, because I settled with this one. (Even though my Pinterest is full of adorable looking coops!- but I have no first hand experience with them)

 

[Buckbeak01]

Thanks for the suggestions. I may have to have a buddy of mine help me build one.

 

[ColoRockies]

We have had no luck with prebuilt coops at $300 or less. They are always too small or not sturdy enough... even from tsc. After the last one we bought , we broke down and built one to our liking. Homemade is cheaper and better if ya have a little skill and some basic tools. Good luck!

 

[scratch32]

 

[scratch32]

 

[scratch32]

Cost of materials around $300 total. not quite complete yet but it should hold up for several years in the Texas weather.