Eccentric, predator proof, fun, repurposed brooder box

[PartiPoodles]

First time chicken owner and decided to build my own brooder box since the pre made ones were either sold out or too expensive. This box was made using all repurposed materials I already had leftover from prior human home rebuilds, etc.; with a few exceptions: the dog kennel pan, plexiglass top, and a few of the interior accessories. I wanted to make something that is:
1. Fun for the chicks, keeps them occupied.
2. Predator proof enough that it would take long enough and cause enough noise for my dogs to be alerted and give that predator a really bad day if it doesn’t high tail it outta here quickly enough.
3. Pull out tray for easy cleaning once the chicks are 2 weeks old and can walk on hardware cloth safely.
4. Adjustable heights for food and water, for the obvious reasons.
5. Easily portable

Meet Cluckingham Palace exterior security joins Cluck E. Cheese funhouse interior. A mutant trash panda (raccoon) bred with a steroid induced bobcat shouldn’t be able to get in before the guard dogs arrive on scene. 4x4 corner posts, with 2x4 and plywood construction. Back wall is insulated. Hardware cloth and thick plexiglass top with Nite Ize S-biners locking the top tightly.

Feel free to offer feedback or suggestions that would be helpful to consider for modification if possible to do at this point. I’m a newbie chicken owner and know there will be newbie mistakes made. It’s okay- not too proud to learn from others much wiser than I.

At the very least, hopefully this inspires others to repurpose some of their materials laying around taking up space. Thanks everyone!

Note: for the first 2 weeks the brooder box will be using a plastic cabinet liner on the floor with wood chips on top.

 

[PartiPoodles]

Adding a couple of pics using my thermal camera. Temps appear good. Temp color range bar is visible on the left side when the pic is opened in full view.

 

[PartiPoodles]

By comparison, here’s a thermal of my son’s adult flock inside the coop on a 40 degree night. The temp color range is visible on the left side when the pic is viewed in full

 

[3KillerBs]

The thermal pictures are really neat!

 

[PartiPoodles]

The thermal pictures are really neat!

Thermal pics are by a thumb sized thermal camera I just attach to my cell phone. Uses for it are almost endless. It’s called “Seek Thermal” and have versions for iPhone or Android. A bit pricey, but really worth it for certain uses. Been using it for a few years now in the Compact Pro version. Especially useful for large properties where you’re trying to figure out the cause of a livestock disturbance, what has the dogs upset, or being able to see in pitch black conditions.

 

[PartiPoodles]

First time chicken owner and decided to build my own brooder box since the pre made ones were either sold out or too expensive. This box was made using all repurposed materials I already had leftover from prior human home rebuilds, etc.; with a few exceptions: the dog kennel pan, plexiglass top, and a few of the interior accessories. I wanted to make something that is:
1. Fun for the chicks, keeps them occupied.
2. Predator proof enough that it would take long enough and cause enough noise for my dogs to be alerted and give that predator a really bad day if it doesn’t high tail it outta here quickly enough.
3. Pull out tray for easy cleaning once the chicks are 2 weeks old and can walk on hardware cloth safely.
4. Adjustable heights for food and water, for the obvious reasons.
5. Easily portable

Meet Cluckingham Palace exterior security joins Cluck E. Cheese funhouse interior. A mutant trash panda (raccoon) bred with a steroid induced bobcat shouldn’t be able to get in before the guard dogs arrive on scene. 4x4 corner posts, with 2x4 and plywood construction. Back wall is insulated. Hardware cloth and thick plexiglass top with Nite Ize S-biners locking the top tightly.

Feel free to offer feedback or suggestions that would be helpful to consider for modification if possible to do at this point. I’m a newbie chicken owner and know there will be newbie mistakes made. It’s okay- not too proud to learn from others much wiser than I.

At the very least, hopefully this inspires others to repurpose some of their materials laying around taking up space. Thanks everyone!

Note: for the first 2 weeks the brooder box will be using a plastic cabinet liner on the floor with wood chips on top.

First time chicken owner and decided to build my own brooder box since the pre made ones were either sold out or too expensive. This box was made using all repurposed materials I already had leftover from prior human home rebuilds, etc.; with a few exceptions: the dog kennel pan, plexiglass top, and a few of the interior accessories. I wanted to make something that is:
1. Fun for the chicks, keeps them occupied.
2. Predator proof enough that it would take long enough and cause enough noise for my dogs to be alerted and give that predator a really bad day if it doesn’t high tail it outta here quickly enough.
3. Pull out tray for easy cleaning once the chicks are 2 weeks old and can walk on hardware cloth safely.
4. Adjustable heights for food and water, for the obvious reasons.
5. Easily portable

Meet Cluckingham Palace exterior security joins Cluck E. Cheese funhouse interior. A mutant trash panda (raccoon) bred with a steroid induced bobcat shouldn’t be able to get in before the guard dogs arrive on scene. 4x4 corner posts, with 2x4 and plywood construction. Back wall is insulated. Hardware cloth and thick plexiglass top with Nite Ize S-biners locking the top tightly.

Feel free to offer feedback or suggestions that would be helpful to consider for modification if possible to do at this point. I’m a newbie chicken owner and know there will be newbie mistakes made. It’s okay- not too proud to learn from others much wiser than I.

At the very least, hopefully this inspires others to repurpose some of their materials laying around taking up space. Thanks everyone!

Note: for the first 2 weeks the brooder box will be using a plastic cabinet liner on the floor with wood chips on top.

2 lessons learned so far I’d do differently next time:
1. Chick poop can be tougher than concrete. Use surface/floor paint anywhere they can poop on the wood frame since it will tolerate the power chiseling needed to remove the concrete poop- lol
2. Attachment built to the outside for using a clamped thermal heat lamp