Chicken Coop Build Help

[txarcher]

New guy here. I know nothing about chickens, chicken coops or construction. But we want to build a chicken coop out of this existing goat barn. I want the coop/run to be in the area inside the cedar logs and go back under the roof of the goat shed.

How would you finish this out? What is the best and easiest way to do it? Can I have it three sided and leave the existing roof as is without adding more roof? Do I need to add walls under the roof line and connect it to the existing fence/gate? The primary predators will be raccoons and foxes. Maybe some cats/dogs.

I am located in the Texas Hill Country.

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Ted Brown]

Open air coops are viable in almost all climates. Chickens require a sheltered area that prevents cold drafts (no ruffled feathers) while on their roosts.

They also require protection from predators 24/7. Raccoons and others, are able to climb, including up and over the unfinished run walls I see in the pictures above. Either a roof that encloses the inside area or electric wire fencing or... Walls should be enclosed using 1/2" hardware cloth.

You have not indicated the size of the shelters you have. If there is sufficient space, 14 Sq feet per bird, you could close the open fronts off, again using hardware cloth.

Chickens are not elitists, fancy not required only that they are secure from predators and inclement weather.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Welcome to the forum, glad you joined!

In the Hill Country you will have coyote, fox, bobcat, dogs, snakes, raccoons, eagles, and hawks, plus some other things. Climatewise an open air coop can work well.

How precious will your chickens be? How much would it hurt to lose one or more chickens or some of the eggs? Snakes, rats, and some weasels can get through openings less than 1" wide so you'd have to wrap everything in 1/2" hardware cloth to be extremely safe. That would include a roof over the run and dig protection around the sides. A lot of work and a lot of money. What is your risk tolerance?

While basically any of these predators can strike in the middle of the day, night is when you are most at risk. I use a philosophy of making the coop extremely predator safe and make the run predator resistant. I used 1" welded wire to close off any openings in the coop and fenced the run with 2" x 4" welded wire. Some things can get through the 1" holes but it's worked very well. The 2x4 will stop anything of size so I'm OK with that. I did put a roof over the run but that was more to keep the run drier plus shade, not just because of predators.

I also have a large area enclosed with electric netting. That has stopped any land-based predator. Flying predators can still attack but I haven't had any problem with them though some forum members have.

Another option is to use electric wires around that to stop climbing predators but you'd still need a wire fence to direct them to the electric wires and stop them from just walking through.