boat as coop?

[Bengalcats1]

My chickens are babies and would be spooked by that flag waving in the breeze, you think they might be afraid of that to?

 

[big deal]

you can see two scupper holes about half way up the transom, that is the inside back deck height. or the old engine compartment below those holes could be turned into a custom bunk house too with engine hatches for access. I was considering cutting a large hole in the bottom for an entrance and then fencing around the hull so underneath would be their "run" ( 35' x 12') then enclosing the back deck with wire. they would then be prisoners. argghhhh ---then if they don't produce eggs we could put them on the spit, plus dear old mom is already worried the poop deck will be where she walks to the garden.

the good news is that second day aboard they gave up 4 eggs and I saw the rooster get layed twice....so they must like their new ship !!!!

don't know about the flag...learning everything here. I didn't give all this any forethought, I just responded to a craigslist ad for FREE- 12 laying hens and three roosters. anyone have input about flags ? I think I need to enclose underneath so I don't have to worry about the dog. an opening above the "v" on the stern is sounding good, that would be about 2 ft. off the ground and easy to extend the wire over the stern to enclose it all.

 

[big deal]

second day they gave up three eggs. one hen and one rooster missing but heard the rooster crowing this morning from the woods, hope the hen is with him. moved a large dog house next to the boat to set up another small coop and run for the second rooster and his two hens. so nobody has abandoned ship yet. 9 hens and one rooster seem to be happy aboard with no locked doors.

 

[big deal]

THE DOG KILLED THE THIRD ROOSTER TODAY IN THE RAIN. but the hen came back. I put some food and water in the dog house and they all went in and layed a couple eggs. So I threw together this run from stockade panels that where sitting around and will add 1x2s' to the top and chicken wire. at least they are safe from the dog now !!!

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[Pharm Girl]

How is the boat coop working out? Lose any more birds? Could you take some more pics of the inside. It cracks me up.

 

[big deal]

all is good with the boat coop now. I added some wire around the back deck so they couldn't jump off and screens on the windows and added a box fan on the floor in the corner and behind it is a favorite spot to lay eggs--guess they like the breeze while they are sitting there. good therapy chickens are. after a couple weeks the straw on the floor is a mess so will be changing that out and removing the carpet to replace it with sand. I 'll add some more photos soon. I have three hens and a rooster in the pen and 9 hens and a rooster in the boat. after I get this down a little better I will be making the fridge into an incubator as they make more eggs than we eat. dear old mom doesn't have to burn the weeds from the garden now as the chickens love the weeds and the used straw from the boat will go to the garden as mulch/fertilizer.

 

[crossgirl]

This cracks me up. Love it! We had a derelict Formula on blocks in the FRONT yard for a couple years. It wasn't til I started eyeing it for a chicken coop that my DBF agreed to get rid of it. Glad your chickens have settled into their quarters.

 

[Lovesdisney]

Hahaha Love it!

 

[Mom2sixpeeps]

Ha! I love the boat!!

 

[nelgkel]

love it!! there is a 50 foot free boat on CL right now and the first thing I thought of was a chicken coop or a shed!