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My Coop: The Chik-n-Barn and 2 Chik-n-Runs

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LisaJean

LisaJean

Songster
12 Years
Sep 30, 2007
338
14
141
Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Here is my coop, completed at last.

coop.jpg


I bought the Chik-n-barn + run, and one additional run. So the barn is in the middle with a run on either side. It give the girls a lot of room.

My reviews for these items... eh. Overpriced, in my opinion. Plus the runs come partially assembled, and on both of them, they were not put together right, and the pre-drilled holes did not line up correctly. Also the entire setup was missing hardware, or had the wrong size bolts.

My feeling is, if I were to do it over, I would find plans online and build my own.
 
Yep, it is easy to move. Just remove four bolts, and then each of the three pieces can be moved. The barn needs two people to lift it, but it's still easily portable.

I have put hardware cloth on the bottom of the barn, since it comes floorless.
 
That looks like the same one that they have at the local farm store. I noticed that it was made out of 1/4" plywood and had no floor. I didn't feel it was very predator proof at all. It's very cute though, and I'm thinking of trying to build one similar, but stronger and more durable. Did your's have nesting boxes inside or just the slots to get the eggs out of? I didn't see boxes in the one at the store. But it was up on a shelf. I see you've already had the same concern about too much ventilation through the top. I really like the style, just needs some beefing up. Good idea on the double runs
 
Hi, LC! The thingy came with three nest boxes. I haven't put them in yet, because I'm not expecting eggs for another few months.

It won't keep out anything big and strong, like a fox or a bear, or a racoon, but I live in the city limits and have yet to see any of those thing. Plus I have chain link around the yard.

Yeah, heehee, I have some cardboard covering up the vents at the top, to keep the cold air off my girls. I'll take them off when it gets warm, of course. And I plan to make something a little more attractive that the cardboard. I'd like to put plexiglass up, but I'm not sure where to get it custom cut.
 
Man my yard is a mess.... I've just been studying the picture. What a slob I look like! LOL

There's an old couch waiting to be taken to the dump, my bird feeders are empty and having been mangled by squirrels, my isolation cage is sitting in the middle of the yard, the cooler has been there since July, and there's pine straw everywhere.

You can see the little galvaized trash can that I keep birdseed in. And over to the right of the picture you can just see the edge of my composter. It's a big black drum on a wooden rack, so you can rotate it.

And you can see my hammock, from which I do a lot of chicken-watching.

I don't know what the cinderblock is doing out there. I was looking for one the other day, and it was right there in plain sight all along.
 
Do you have any kind of saw? Plexiglas cuts really easy with a jig saw or anything like that. If you get a good deep cut with a razor knife, you can probably break it on the line too.

Well, it's probably not bad for in the city. Might I recommend you put a floor in it. So dogs don't dig under. I'm just sick of all these dog attacks of late. I sold a bunch of 7 week olds to a lady, and a dog or something dug under and got them.
 
I think it's an attractive design and makes a great starter.

I started out with something like it and I've been beefing it up, now and then, ever since. I just got done insulating it.

Don't wait until you see a predator before you build up the coop. Mine is Fort Knox now, but I had to learn some hard lessons along the way.
 

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