A Small Canadian Coop?

[Hotwire]

Hello, My wife and I just bought a small piece of land (1/2 acre). And we would like to get 6 laying hens, 2 meat birds and a rooster for bringing up my own chicks. so roughly 10 birds in total. What is my best bet for coop and run? is there an insulated coop design for the winters up here??

 

[ratRose58]

Chickens are VERY good in winter. I know, i'm from canada too. All you need to keep them warm in winter is a one or two REGULAR light bulb(s), and some hay. On warmer days you can open vents windows etc. You should NOT get a heat lamp. It might get them too used to the warmth, and should it break they may get frost bite. They will be absolutely fine in the winter with just the light bulb and hay. I know many people who use just those in our cold canadian winters! It is your choice wether to build a big or small coop. I feel a slightly bigger one would be good, to alleviate any stress they have. Also it depends on if you are free ranging them or not, the neighborhood you live in etc. A coop can really be anything, as long as its safe, and practicle. It does not have to be ridiculously fancy like some on the site, although they are nice, it isn't completely neccacary.

 

[KimKimWilliamso]

There are amny canadians here who dont even use insulated coops, or bulbs at all through the winter. Im in southern Alberta and we will have only 4 hens in a 4X5 Coop wih no insulation and only a regular watt light bulb for short winter days, etc. and I have been advised this will be adequate.

Good Luck with your small flock!

 

[primalchick]

We just finished our coop and insulated it I know of others who don't insulate their coops, but my hubby grew up with chickens and their coop was not insulated. He said every winter they would have a few freeze to death and I do not want to do that to my chickens. His aunt also has Silkies and she loses a few every winter in her non-insulated coop too. It depends where in Canada you are though, we are in central Alberta and it gets down into the -40's and colder sometimes. I think it's just at those extremes when chickens freeze in non-insulated coops.

They aren't too hard to insulate, just time consuming. We used that foam insulation you just cut into strips (cefort I think it's called? Got it at Totem). We insulated the whole thing (walls, floor, roof and doors). Might be overkill but I don't want to lose any chickens in the winter. Freezing to death would be a horrible way to go.

Ours is 5x5 and housing 4 hens, but I am hoping to get 1-2 more.

 

[Hotwire]

Were going to be building an A-frame Chicken Tractor, Roughly 5' x 10'. with the top being the coop/roosting area and the bottom being the chicken run. We need to keep our animals safe around here as there are quite a few stray cats and dogs, as well as fox's and coyote's. We get our chicks next weekend. We ordered 10 Australorp chicks, but we will see what the survival rate is. We would like to keep between 5 and 7 Hens and 1 rooster. do you think that 50 sq feet is enough for a chicken run?

The roost/coop is going to be cedar shingled on the outside, and made with 3/4" ply. a single 60 watt bulb for light/heat in the winter time. Both the feeder and waterer are going to be suspended from the underside of the coop, and the ramp is going to be raised and held shut by a rope.

Ill take pictures of the progress.

Thank you all for your help!!