These Tiny Pre-Fab Coups.

[Bobby Basham]

Hey, Folks,

Been doing alot of reading for the past few years, but haven't made the plunge yet. I'd like to know why these tiny doghouse-sized coups may house, possibly, 4-6 regular sized hens with THREE nest boxes.

I know that a coop is mainly for sleeping and laying eggs, if they have plenty of outdoor space to roam and play during the day. But really, three nest boxes for 4 hens, maybe 5 girls maximum? Maybe take away the dividers and have a communal nesting box.

I know my way around wood and power tools, but I kinda like that "Bungalo" coop on My Pet Chickens website. Yeah, it's pricey at $489, but I'm not in the mood right now for building myself since I work two jobs. If I get some time this fall, I could build something myself. I'm in no hurry to get chickens right now, but it would be nice to have something in place incase I decide to place an order next February. --BB

Bobby Basham
Tucson, Arizona

 

[Judy]

Sometimes I think there are no chicken owners among the designers of prefab coops....

You might do better to purchase a shed or utility building, particularly if you can find one made of wood. You would have plenty of time to add a roost and some nests (or purchase something like a covered kitty litter pan for a nest.) The only challenge would be the high level ventilation -- but then, often prefab coops do not have sufficient ventilation, anyway. Another option might be to hire it built, possibly no more costly but with more product for your money -- and a coop is never too big. Even if you don't expand your number of chickens, they love the space, and it's very nice to have room for feed storage, a separate area for chicks or an injured bird, etc. My coop held 50 at one time and I now have 10, but I'm happy to have the space -- and so are the girls on a windy or rainy day, or even a very hot, sunny one.

 

[BGinVA]

Sometimes I think there are no chicken owners among the designers of prefab coops....

I agree, when I decided to take the plunge I was anxious to get my first chicks while I was on vacation from work so I could spend time with them, so I bought one of those tiny prefabs from Tractor Supply. It said it would hold up to 5 chickens, that's a joke, I'd never be that cruel to an animal. So for me that tiny prefab has become our brooder, which it is good for that, and I was able to get my chicks and raise them for a few weeks while we worked on the real coop. Now I have more chicks coming and they will go to the prefab "brooder" but in hindsight I probably could have saved a hundred bucks and just bought a plastic storage box for a brooder too.

 

[Erin~TheChickenLover]

Sometimes I think there are no chicken owners among the designers of prefab coops....

You might do better to purchase a shed or utility building, particularly if you can find one made of wood. You would have plenty of time to add a roost and some nests (or purchase something like a covered kitty litter pan for a nest.) The only challenge would be the high level ventilation -- but then, often prefab coops do not have sufficient ventilation, anyway. Another option might be to hire it built, possibly no more costly but with more product for your money -- and a coop is never too big. Even if you don't expand your number of chickens, they love the space, and it's very nice to have room for feed storage, a separate area for chicks or an injured bird, etc. My coop held 50 at one time and I now have 10, but I'm happy to have the space -- and so are the girls on a windy or rainy day, or even a very hot, sunny one.

I agree and couldn't have said it better myself.

 

[clogan98]

I've been having the same thoughts. I built a coop, but I'd never worked with wood or power tools, so I'm not 100% happy with it so I want to make a new one. But the thought of doing it all over again so soon (I just built it last month) had me looking for kits I could just put together. I have 5 6 week olds, but mostly big girls (brahma and such). I'm looking at these things and they'll have, like say, 4 next boxes but be only 2x3!!!!! I think I'm just going to build the next one slowly over time. And actually TAKE MY TIME to do it. Not be in such an OCD rush to finish it.

 

[Bobby Basham]

It would probably be nice to get a shed, but I live in a community with an HOA. Any out buildings/structures must not be seen from the street or over the neighboring and back 5ft walls, so any coop, including the run, must be below wall height. I could spend some time going through some coop plans and come up with a mix of my own.

Push come to shove, if I bought a pre-fab, I would reinforce the structure itself, and maybe slap on some good exterior house paint or marine stain/varnish which is pretty tough. --BB

Bobby Basham
Tucson, Arizona


My chain-link run project....maybe 10ft X 20ft. Plenty room for 5 hens. Hardware cloth extending half-way up the fence and extending out beneath the planter boxes. I'll use 2 x 12's wooden planter boxes and actually have the inside border bolted through the fence for even more reinforcement. Hence, the boxes are actually semi-attached to the run itself. The top will also be covered. I would like to have two big potted plants at the front corners, and maybe reserve the boxes for veggies or some grape vines. My backyard is a dirt landscape with no shading, with a NW/SE orientation.

 

[PeepsAreForMe]

Bobby, I agree with everyone else who commented. I have a coop similar to the SaltBox one on My Pet Chicken. They are great for raising babies or quarantining, but for every day use they are pretty small. I only have 3 girls and one big roo. They fit fine but I could not add anymore if I wanted to. If you need to buy the pre-fab you mentioned, if you can, you should raise it up. As much as you can. They say that there is 18" under the coop so the chickens will be comfortable, but I can tell you YOU won't be when you are on all fours trying to squeeze inside to clean or change feed or water!! I did notice that one has a nice deep poop board. That makes cleaning much easier. The one I have, the drawer is less than 1" deep, so when I pull it out, any pine chips that are higher get pushed off the top onto the floor underneath the board, then I have sweep that out too - double cleaning!!!

That is why my DH is building me a beautiful coop, one I can walk into and is easy to clean. Good luck with your search! I think you are a rare breed on this site, you are actually planning well in advance!

 

[BeulahBreezes]

We have a pre-fab coop..it is fine for our 4 pullets. They free range all day, so they are not in the henhouse, copp or pen that much during the day, except to lay their eggs. We did enlarge the pen area so there is less crowding. We may build a bigger coop, if time and money provides! But right now, our coop is working out just fine! ~Beulah

 

[Judy]

You know, in my climate, that chain link run with 3 walls and a solid roof over one end would be plenty of coop. Chickens tolerate cold way better than heat. There is a very successful coop design for northern climates that has a large open area on one side (I wish I still had a link for it, but it wouldn't meet your HOA requirements, anyway.) Where (in general, for climate) are you?

 

[peep-a-boo]

I've also been looking at those prefab coops. The one that caught my eye is the Victoria at the MPC site. It's 9sf inside and has a nest box that bumps it out another foot. It looks well made, although I can see a few flaws in design. DH has limited carpentry skills and I really want a cute coop. Since I have to be cleaning and maintaining them everyday, at least I can look forward to an adorable coop. Chicks will be here in a couple of weeks. We gotta decide whether to buy or build soon.