A few questions about my coop/design

[aart]

They don't really need heat, ventilation is much more important, especially in florida. Is there some venting up near the roof above the roosts?
Is your dog out in the yard all night? Because that's when the predators will be the biggest problem.

 

[jwright]

Yes the dogs are outside all night, and I added a 12x12 window on the back of the coop for ventilation. There is no door to the hen house right now but I am planning to add one this weekend. I have been putting them in the house each night, but I was wondering when they will start going in on their own? Each night before dark they huddle together under the house. and I round them up and put them in the house. I have roosting poles that are 2x4s laid across the house, but is 4" too wide for them or should I turn them upright.

 

[4 the Birds]

Yes the dogs are outside all night, and I added a 12x12 window on the back of the coop for ventilation. There is no door to the hen house right now but I am planning to add one this weekend. I have been putting them in the house each night, but I was wondering when they will start going in on their own? Each night before dark they huddle together under the house. and I round them up and put them in the house. I have roosting poles that are 2x4s laid across the house, but is 4" too wide for them or should I turn them upright.

As mentioned, a solid coop floor is WAY better. Be sure to add a bale of wood chips on that laminate floor to help with runny poo. Your nesting boxes should also have a front lip on them to hold in nesting material. 2x4s on the side are fine. I use landscape timbers since they have rounded edges. Add wire or board below the coop so that they go into the coop instead. At dusk they will instinctively go inside and sit on their roost bars. You can clip their wings but even clipped birds can get up over a 4' fence. I free range and don't clip and my birds stay inside the fenced area. You will probably want a pop door to open and close each morning/evening to protect your birds at night. Ideally you could have a covered/shaded run that is predator proof. This way you could leave you pop door open for ventillation and the birds will be safe to move about. You can free range when you are at home to watch them. Noticed the cruiser in the background. Thanks for your service! Hope this helps!

 

[jwright]

Well here is an update turns out the only predators I have been concerned as of yet, is my male Beagle Buddy, guess instinct is stronger when it comes to small things running around making noise. I have them inside of a chain link fence and had to add chicken wire to the inside of it to keep them from getting out of the pen as they could fit through the chain link. I can let them out of the coop and into the pen so they get some free range about 20 x 40 feet, and I planted some wildflower seeds inside the pen that they can snack on once they sprout out. Now just waiting to get some return on my investment in a few more months.

 

[jwright]

Anyone have any suggestions on how I can get my dog used to the chickens????

 

[blucoondawg]

I think you may have a rough road ahead with beagles, they have a good amount of hunt in them and I haven't ever been too successful with much obedience type training with hound breeds of any sort, they have a strong instinct to chase and they will nip and bite if they can catch what they are chasing, they may not really intend to kill but they will injure small animals and chickens. One of our beagles got loose 3 times when we were gone cutting firewood on the weekend and got into the run and decimated the flock every time, he would kill or injure at least half of our birds on every occassion. We had a secure coop and a decently secure very large run but he managed to get in during the day when the birds were outside in the run. You will have to watch the dogs very closely and likely will have to make sure the dogs are elsewhere while birds are free ranging. You may also try a training collar. That is just my opinion from our beagles, ours were good hunters if yours aren't so much then maybe you will have less problems.