Bought a Coop for Cats, Now Thinking Chickens

[Tookie]

Hi and welcome to BYC!

 

[chrissynemetz]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[Gold Eggs]

Have you thought about just sectioning off part of your garage for the cats? That's how my neighbor introduces new barn cats, and they are all but feral. He puts up a barrier in his garage near a window and leaves them in there for (I think) 2 weeks, maybe longer. They don't require much.

Another idea is to look for a used dog kennel. That's what I have for my chicken run. I saw one the other day for $200!!! I paid $600 for mine years ago. You could use it for the cats until they are accustomed to their new home and then transition it to use for chickens. You just have to add hardware cloth around the bottom of the kennel for the chickens. You could put that entire coop in the run and modify the coop to hold more chickens.

Just a suggestion. But think outside the box! Many people don't lock their chickens up 24/7. There will be a risk of predation, but you can mitigate that risk by being mindful of their habitat.

My flock (17 chickens and 5 ducks) have a shed I converted into a coop, a covered run, plus a foraging yard surrounded by electric netting and covered with aviary netting. Other people use hoop coops (my next project - easy, inexpensive, and effective) or custom built from scratch. There are a gazillion ways to do it!

I had thought about the garage but I thought it wasnt idea for 2 reasons. 1) these cats get very stressed, very quickly if they are brought indoors. I honestly think they would prefer less space but be outdoors. 2) I wanted them to get accustomed to the sites, sounds and most importantly smells of their new outdoor turf.

Thanks for the tip on the used dog kennel, I have been looking on facebook marketplace and have a few leads. The challenge as mentioned in another post is that I need to get a really good roof on it for the cats part of the equation.

It sounds like these cats are basically feral. Are they spayed/neutered? If not, they should be asap.

In all honesty, I would take the one that let's you pick them up and let the 3 others stay where they are. If they are that agressive now, they will fight and tear each other (and you) apart if you try to confine them.

Sorry I should have clarified, we had them TNR'ed when we first moving in thinking they were feral. the 3 boys are most definetly not feral, they act like house cats and even let us put them in carriers and are well behaved at the vet (better behaved than our indoor girls!). The 4th is a female who is borderline feral. We have gotten really far with her, she lets us pet her when we feed her but that is it. She is going to be a challenge and will require using a drop trap to bring her. The problem is, she wont have any care taker if we leave her and the bigger problem is my wife is in love with her and wont leave her no matter what. None are aggressive, all 4 live in harmony, 2 are older so they are extremely chill. I was just concerned how they might react to getting put in a cage, they are obviously going to be pissed.

Instead of trying to let them out a couple of times a day, set up your coop in a larger run. Look for something like this:
View attachment 3231059
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Lucky-Dog-...g-Box-Kit-Pet-Kennel/1002397070?user=shopping
You can sometimes find them used. My sister got one "free for pickup." You'll need to put a top on it to keep cats in and predators out. Poultry netting works for chickens, but you'll need something a bit sturdier (and fully anchored on) for cats. And ... if you get chicks when you move, they can stay in a brooder box while the cats acclimate. By the time the chicks are ready to move out from under the heat source, your kitties will be ready to roam!

Thanks, I am on the look out on craigslist and facebook marketplace, this might be perfect if I can integrated it with the coop we already have.

 

[Gold Eggs]

Thanks to everyone who has been replying, this is a really welcoming community! Totally awesome!

It seems most of you agree 2-4 is the max I can do with what I have, which is fine because 3 is probably the most I would want to start with.

I am curious how much manure and smell I am going to be looking at for a flock of 3? Some blogs have kind of scared me a little bit by making it sound like having a flock involves a huge amount of smell, flies and shoveling manure.

Also, how involved is winter care, do the birds eat and poop less in the winter? I ask because I think I would enjoy taking care of the flock 80% of the year, but in Jan and Feb, I dont think I would enjoy having to shovel manure in the freezing windy cold conditions daily. Also, do the hens need heat in the winter?

Thanks!

 

[MROO]

Thanks to everyone who has been replying, this is a really welcoming community! Totally awesome!

It seems most of you agree 2-4 is the max I can do with what I have, which is fine because 3 is probably the most I would want to start with.

I am curious how much manure and smell I am going to be looking at for a flock of 3? Some blogs have kind of scared me a little bit by making it sound like having a flock involves a huge amount of smell, flies and shoveling manure.

Also, how involved is winter care, do the birds eat and poop less in the winter? I ask because I think I would enjoy taking care of the flock 80% of the year, but in Jan and Feb, I dont think I would enjoy having to shovel manure in the freezing windy cold conditions daily. Also, do the hens need heat in the winter?

Thanks!

You're really wise to ask all these questions up-front. Most of us learned the hard way! You can easily keep four in your coop if you leave it open to the run all day. It's kinda like using a hotel room as your base-of-operations for a vacation ... it's just for sleeping!
As for cleaning and smell - for a coop that size, a quick sweep-through each day for the "heavy stuff" should suffice. I pick through mine (about twenty birds) as needed, maybe once a week. It only gets a thorough cleaning (down to "the bones" and disinfected) a couple of times a year - when Spring warms everything up and whenever the urge hits me. It's pretty satisfying to take a sloppy coop and put everything to rights again ... makes me feel accomplished, no matter HOW my kitchen looks!
As far as smell goes, if you pick through regularly and keep your coop dry (fix any water leaks as soon as you find them,) you should be fine. If you smell ammonia in the coop, your issue is usually ventilation, not manure. Make sure there is enough natural air movement for all of that ammonia to escape naturally.
Make sure your vents are above your birds' heads when roosting. The real danger from drafts comes from below. And no, if your coop is properly ventilated, unless you live in an extremely frigid area, your hens should be fine without heat.
Good luck! And keep asking questions. Before long, you'll be the one answering them for others!