“Treehouse” Coop Ontario, Canada
Our coop sits above our run and includes a small protected balcony. Its footprint is ~ 12’ x 16’. It is home to 6 pullets: 4 Wyandottes, a Brahma and a Delaware.
When my two sons were 7 and 9, my husband built them a ridiculously dangerous and equally thrilling treehouse. It had a climbing wall, zip line down into the forest, high balcony without railing, loft, trap door and all sorts of windows and lookouts to zap enemy nerf gun targets from.
Fast forward 8 years, and those now teen boys have helped us transform that same treehouse into what we hope will be an adventurous coop for our six (for now) pullets. Here is my advice on coop building with a sense of fun thrown into the regular mix of must haves.
I didn’t draw out measured schematics because we were working with an existing structure, and I was working with teenagers and a husband who seemed to work best without instruction. Quite honestly much of our design details were a bit pragmatic / creative… kind of vernacular in design. I was “research” and found that role helped when inevitably one of the guys had a question. How big are the nesting boxes? How much light do we really need inside? What will be on the floor?
I am no expert, but do appreciate that above all else, the coop must be a safe fortress.
Predator proofing is paramount. Learn your local predators and choose an appropriate gauge of wired shell. Then wrap the coop like a gift box: under and around and above. We used hardware cloth to defend our chickens, and wrapped their upper coop - floor to ceiling. The run has heavy gauge wire mesh under the entire floor and up all the sides. Too many friends with chickens tell me stories of surprise predator attacks that dug under their run (even with buried walls). We live in a lively forest that seems to be habitat for every bird of prey and four legged furry carnivore possible (including off leash neighbourhood dogs). Snakes and weasels won’t make it past the hardware cloth protecting our coop but I have risked their safety from these less common creatures with a larger mesh surrounding our run. Cost is an issue and that led me to compromise on limiting the smallest sized hardware cloth only in the coop itself. I may regret that decision, but hope that what we’ve done is enough.
It seems climate, waste management and ventilation all can work hand in hand. A coop can build up gas, moisture, dust, stifling heat or mould. We insulated, and that unfortunately closed off some good ventilation, so windows were hinged to open as vents. A source of power was added (above ground for now - we may bury it if we find the time), that gave me the option of heat and light when needed in the winter season. I’m going to give the deep litter method a try and hope it provides some insulation in winter for our raised coop. So far I’m very pleased with this litter method. No flies, unpleasant smells or issues at all. The upkeep is surprisingly simple and small: stir the bedding once in a while and sprinkle a little fresh shaving down when things seem out of proportion. I think the key is to never let there be any exposed chicken poop to cause trouble. So I scrape any that lands on the hatch or other wood surface into the litter.
Part of my advice is to have fun with the extras. My husband randomly decided to build an outdoor cage around the preexisting second floor deck. He definitely went overboard - but it was his time and he had fun. Roosts now overhang the floor (waste management), and despite my scepticism about chickens wanting a balcony - it has turned out to be their favourite place. Safe, sunny… a great view. Smart chickens. Smarter husband.
One of my favourite details includes an escape backup on our door - in case it swings shut and latches - trapping me in, my husband built in a little safety - a pull from the inside!
Our run is shaded by the coop and accessible from inside it by the hatch that existed in the tree fort days. We added a ramp and despite it being a bit steep, the girls are starting to get the hang of it.
The run has all sorts of fun details, a tire bath, vertical space, a forest pine floor and earth to scratch around in. There is a little downstairs hatch too…their portal to the forest world. I keep expanding and adjusting this outdoor run to keep them entertained with new stumps and trees. Easy to do as the chicken fence I enclose them with is so pliable and light. Who knows... maybe I will let them free range one day. For now I like the fence keeping them safe from wandering onto a nearby country road.
What would I change? Our insulation was a late decision and could have been better planned. It has delayed a nice finished look to the interior. But I imagine it won’t be the only thing we change over time. Preparing for winter will likely trigger some adjustments. But that’s part of the adventure. All BYC tweet advice is welcome.
Our girls will hopefully lay eggs in about a month. Until then they scratch, roost, sunbathe and snuggle their days away in the coop, balcony and run. I spy on them with a little web cam we installed… and its good to see they are happy and safe. Chicken TV. I recommend it.
View attachment 2149819
Our coop sits above our run and includes a small protected balcony. Its footprint is ~ 12’ x 16’. It is home to 6 pullets: 4 Wyandottes, a Brahma and a Delaware.
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When my two sons were 7 and 9, my husband built them a ridiculously dangerous and equally thrilling treehouse. It had a climbing wall, zip line down into the forest, high balcony without railing, loft, trap door and all sorts of windows and lookouts to zap enemy nerf gun targets from.
Fast forward 8 years, and those now teen boys have helped us transform that same treehouse into what we hope will be an adventurous coop for our six (for now) pullets. Here is my advice on coop building with a sense of fun thrown into the regular mix of must haves.
I didn’t draw out measured schematics because we were working with an existing structure, and I was working with teenagers and a husband who seemed to work best without instruction. Quite honestly much of our design details were a bit pragmatic / creative… kind of vernacular in design. I was “research” and found that role helped when inevitably one of the guys had a question. How big are the nesting boxes? How much light do we really need inside? What will be on the floor?
| 
| 
|
I am no expert, but do appreciate that above all else, the coop must be a safe fortress.
Predator proofing is paramount. Learn your local predators and choose an appropriate gauge of wired shell. Then wrap the coop like a gift box: under and around and above. We used hardware cloth to defend our chickens, and wrapped their upper coop - floor to ceiling. The run has heavy gauge wire mesh under the entire floor and up all the sides. Too many friends with chickens tell me stories of surprise predator attacks that dug under their run (even with buried walls). We live in a lively forest that seems to be habitat for every bird of prey and four legged furry carnivore possible (including off leash neighbourhood dogs). Snakes and weasels won’t make it past the hardware cloth protecting our coop but I have risked their safety from these less common creatures with a larger mesh surrounding our run. Cost is an issue and that led me to compromise on limiting the smallest sized hardware cloth only in the coop itself. I may regret that decision, but hope that what we’ve done is enough.
It seems climate, waste management and ventilation all can work hand in hand. A coop can build up gas, moisture, dust, stifling heat or mould. We insulated, and that unfortunately closed off some good ventilation, so windows were hinged to open as vents. A source of power was added (above ground for now - we may bury it if we find the time), that gave me the option of heat and light when needed in the winter season. I’m going to give the deep litter method a try and hope it provides some insulation in winter for our raised coop. So far I’m very pleased with this litter method. No flies, unpleasant smells or issues at all. The upkeep is surprisingly simple and small: stir the bedding once in a while and sprinkle a little fresh shaving down when things seem out of proportion. I think the key is to never let there be any exposed chicken poop to cause trouble. So I scrape any that lands on the hatch or other wood surface into the litter.
Part of my advice is to have fun with the extras. My husband randomly decided to build an outdoor cage around the preexisting second floor deck. He definitely went overboard - but it was his time and he had fun. Roosts now overhang the floor (waste management), and despite my scepticism about chickens wanting a balcony - it has turned out to be their favourite place. Safe, sunny… a great view. Smart chickens. Smarter husband.
One of my favourite details includes an escape backup on our door - in case it swings shut and latches - trapping me in, my husband built in a little safety - a pull from the inside!
Our run is shaded by the coop and accessible from inside it by the hatch that existed in the tree fort days. We added a ramp and despite it being a bit steep, the girls are starting to get the hang of it.
The run has all sorts of fun details, a tire bath, vertical space, a forest pine floor and earth to scratch around in. There is a little downstairs hatch too…their portal to the forest world. I keep expanding and adjusting this outdoor run to keep them entertained with new stumps and trees. Easy to do as the chicken fence I enclose them with is so pliable and light. Who knows... maybe I will let them free range one day. For now I like the fence keeping them safe from wandering onto a nearby country road.
Our girls will hopefully lay eggs in about a month. Until then they scratch, roost, sunbathe and snuggle their days away in the coop, balcony and run. I spy on them with a little web cam we installed… and its good to see they are happy and safe. Chicken TV. I recommend it.
View attachment 2149819
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