Bumble Bee is my 3 year old Barred Rock who has been the sole member of the flock for the last 2 years.
She gets along with the dogs and cats by letting them know she’s the boss. She rules the backyard! She is extremely loving with a huge personality and always wants our attention. So, our consideration process of adding to the flock began...
Baby Easter Eggers just happened to be available from a local feed store, so we adopted two pullets: Millie and Greta.
This presented two problems: 1- Bumble Bee might be very difficult to integrate (see below her pecking the window at the chicks cage) and 2- more chickens means more holes in the yard.
We realized the importance of separating the babies from her while they grow. She “free ranges” the yard every day and has a beautiful coop all to herself.
While looking around the backyard for the safest place, we noticed that underneath the trampoline is perfect! Here’s the final outcome:
There is partial sunlight all day, protection from predators from above, the yard underneath is already ruined so who cares if they dig it up more, and the base is sturdy.
How to assemble:
We purchased Blue Hawk brand Poultry Green HDPE Extruded Mesh Rolled Fencing from Lowe’s for $50. It is very strong plastic in the shape and size of typical chicken wire.
We wrapped it around the base and secured it with zip ties to the metal (see above image with Bumble Bee safe inside). We put stakes in the ground through the fencing in the spots where there was no metal base. See below silver rectangular piece is the top of the metal stake.
For the door, we left three feet of extra fencing to overlap and added a 1x2 piece of wood on the edge to keep it sturdy.
Then we added small bungee cords to the end so we can easily latch the “door”.
When Millie and Greta turned 4 weeks old they were ready for to play in a safe, outdoor, secure pen and introduce them to Bumble Bee through the safety of a fence.
Not including the cost of the trampoline (15’ for $270 on Amazon), this was a wonderful and extremely inexpensive solution to our backyard chicken dilemma. Hardly any cleaning is needed and Most importantly, all three of the girls Love it!!
New house rules: of course, no jumping on the trampoline while the chickens are underneath!
She gets along with the dogs and cats by letting them know she’s the boss. She rules the backyard! She is extremely loving with a huge personality and always wants our attention. So, our consideration process of adding to the flock began...
Baby Easter Eggers just happened to be available from a local feed store, so we adopted two pullets: Millie and Greta.
This presented two problems: 1- Bumble Bee might be very difficult to integrate (see below her pecking the window at the chicks cage) and 2- more chickens means more holes in the yard.
We realized the importance of separating the babies from her while they grow. She “free ranges” the yard every day and has a beautiful coop all to herself.
While looking around the backyard for the safest place, we noticed that underneath the trampoline is perfect! Here’s the final outcome:
There is partial sunlight all day, protection from predators from above, the yard underneath is already ruined so who cares if they dig it up more, and the base is sturdy.
How to assemble:
We purchased Blue Hawk brand Poultry Green HDPE Extruded Mesh Rolled Fencing from Lowe’s for $50. It is very strong plastic in the shape and size of typical chicken wire.
We wrapped it around the base and secured it with zip ties to the metal (see above image with Bumble Bee safe inside). We put stakes in the ground through the fencing in the spots where there was no metal base. See below silver rectangular piece is the top of the metal stake.
For the door, we left three feet of extra fencing to overlap and added a 1x2 piece of wood on the edge to keep it sturdy.
Then we added small bungee cords to the end so we can easily latch the “door”.
When Millie and Greta turned 4 weeks old they were ready for to play in a safe, outdoor, secure pen and introduce them to Bumble Bee through the safety of a fence.
Not including the cost of the trampoline (15’ for $270 on Amazon), this was a wonderful and extremely inexpensive solution to our backyard chicken dilemma. Hardly any cleaning is needed and Most importantly, all three of the girls Love it!!
New house rules: of course, no jumping on the trampoline while the chickens are underneath!
