This photo was taken August 22, 2015. I added the stones around the front of the coop in hopes that snow will be easier remove from that area. Here, you can also see the unfinished, attached structure on the left, which is the closet. I've come to a stall on material to finish it, however ; I need screws to attach the walls and to construct the door. I also still need to clean the rain barrel and install a spout on the bottom of the barrel, so I can claim the water. I got the barrel from my neighbor, who was throwing it out, a few years ago. I knew I could eventually use it, so I grabbed it, and hung onto it until I had the right purpose for it. One of these weekends, soon, and before winter, I'll clean it on the inside with a pressure washer and finish it, too.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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This photo was taken after I made their nest. The nest was constructed from 2X4's for the four sides of the primary frame, 1/4" plywood for the bottom, and 2 1X1's for the nest divider's. Sooner of later, I will come across some material for the nest pulls. I can probably find an old leather belt, at a thrift store, that can be cut into two, 6-8" pieces, and attached by their ends, to create handles on the front side, so I can remove the nest to clean. The nest is the area behind the hinged door propped open in the photo.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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This is obviously the front of the coop. The door was probably one of the more difficult structures to build. That's when I came to fully understand the importance of using a level when building something. At least something with doors. So, the door is a little off, but, nevertheless, it still swings and shuts. The space where the chickens currently roost is more visible in this photo. They each have their place, and Lovey is always the last one to take her place on the far right side, with her feathery behind sticking out. Or, she'll sleep on the roof. Perhaps that makes it obvious that Lovey rules the roost.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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At this point, the chicken crib was functioning. The chickens naturally started going there at night, and roosting on the open, front wall, above the door. That wall will eventually be closed, and now there is a roost inside the coop that spans the length of the nest. Francis, the yellow and brown hen, or the middle hen in the pecking order, occasionally gets confused and goes to the fence post roost, at night. She's corrected by the others, eventually, and high-tails it to the coop to take her rightful place. The platform by the rain barrel is the start of the coop closet. I had to have Andre come back, again, with his snips, to cut the metal for that roof, too. I added the closet because I don't want to schlep threw snow to get the hens food and bedding. The closet is big enough to accommodate a large plastic tub for the pine shavings, and up to three re-purposed, commercial sized olive vats for their pellets. I grew a million, well, maybe, 50 tomato plants for the hens (and me) this summer. I read the book "Once Upon a Flock," by Lauren Scheuer last year, and she mentioned growing tomatoes for her birds, so I tried it. That was great information, because Betty loves tomatoes. So do the others, but Betty is a huge fan, and this cuts down on the food I have to buy for them. The hens also love raspberries, and my bush did very well this year. The hens like to sleep in the blackberry bush, but they don't care much for them as a treat. Next year, I would like to plant some grapes, maybe. The hens like them, too. They passionately love raisins, so I figure I could throw some of the grapes in the dehydrator and make them some home-made raisins.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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The installation of the metal roof was the only part of the coop that I needed help with. I employed one of the roofers who installed the roof on my house, a few years ago, to snip the metal and help me attach it to the structure. He also installed the gutter and spout. I went with a lean-to style roof because of the limited material I had for a gutter and spout, and I wanted more control of the water run-off direction. By the time Andre came over to help me with the roof, I had pretty much all of the rest of the outside completed. In this photo the hinged, nest door is shown propped open. Later, I cut a 1X1 and attached a repurposed piece of industrial-like cord to one end of the 1X1, while attaching the other end of the cord to the inside of the nest. That way, the 1X1 pole won't get lost or misplaced.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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So the chickens crib is starting to come together, at this point. The chickens fully claimed it for their daytime use. At night they would roost on a fence post, nestled by blackberry vines, by my living room window. Although it made me nervous for them to be exposed to the elements and potential predators, I capitulated and installed a shelf big enough for them all to fit on, for the time being. They hated the dog crate that I kept them in, for some reason, but on some occasions I would still use it. There was a few nights when it poured down rain, and I would wake-up in a panic knowing the birds were unprotected. I would leap out of bed and fly down my stairs, out the sliding glass door, to find them stock-still, stupefied, and looking straight up into the pouring rain. Struck by a combination of amusement and horror, I would snatch them off their fence roost, one by one, and secure them in the loathsome crate, where at least they would be dry and not drown. Later, I investigated the strange rain behavior and discovered that it's not likely for chickens to drown, despite human intuition.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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Once I had the frame and the plan for the nesting loft, I started adding windows and walls. I constructed two windows in the loft for cross ventilation in the hot months. I intend to install outside shutters on the windows to do the opposite during the cold months. I made the window on the bottom large so the hens can get some sunshine, if there comes a time when they're locked in their crib during the day. So far, they've been spoiled and allow to roam freely in their fenced-in backyard. I'm pretty sure I made a mistake with the kind of cage wire I chose. I bought it before I read-up thoroughly on predators and coop designs, so I didn't know about the durability of traditional chicken wire. Oh well! I guess it's a good thing that I used screws for just about all the construction, so when the wire rusts out I can easily replace it with a heavier gauge. This is the point where I knew something was wrong with my skill saw; it started acting very angry whenever I used it to cut some of that re-purposed wanes coating. I began to dread using it, and would look for other things I could complete without. Pretty soon, though, it was impossible; I had to soothe my saw's temper and change the blade. In the mean time, I took my miter saw out of its box and put it to use. I couldn't cut the wanes coating with it, but I could cut frame pieces with it. Boy! talk about nervous; I was definitely afraid to engage the intensity of that blade. But, I did, and soon I was over my trepidation. It actually encouraged me to start on the roof.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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This is the bare bones of the hens crib. Oddly enough, I think they knew it was theirs, and moved in right away. The frame is 4ft X 4ft. I knew I wanted a nesting area, and I didn't want to bend down to retrieve the eggs, so I made it into a loft. I also knew I wanted to be able to close the loft up during the cold months. The nesting area takes up only half of the loft, so I can install a trapdoor that will seal off the rest of the area.
- Chicken Crib
- Aug 23, 2015
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