Chicken Tractor ideas

[Wooden Eagle Farm]

We are thinking of a chicken tractor for our meat birds when we get them and moving it around our horse pasture near our house. Hoping I can get people to show us what they have and use for this. Thank you ahead of time for your input.

 

[Pork Pie]

There should be some helpful threads on this link to a search I've just done.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threadloom/search?query=meat bird tractors forum:"21"&tab=618

 

[lazy gardener]

How many meat birds? Will you be brooding them in the tractor? How will you be moving the tractor? How often would you be moving the tractor? Do you expect the use of the tractor to provide a large percentage of their feed needs, or will you simply be using it as alternate housing to a stationary coop? Do you have option to run an electric fence around your pasture to keep predators out? Do horses use the pasture? (in which case, they may help with some predator control???)

You could go with cattle panel walk in style. or build a shorter tractor that is 2 - 3' tall. My most recent build was done in panels, connected with nut/bolt/ L brackets, and used lawnmower wheels. It gets the job done, but I'm not overly pleased with it. I still use it every year, especially when growing out chicks.

 

[Wooden Eagle Farm]

T

How many meat birds? Will you be brooding them in the tractor? How will you be moving the tractor? How often would you be moving the tractor? Do you expect the use of the tractor to provide a large percentage of their feed needs, or will you simply be using it as alternate housing to a stationary coop? Do you have option to run an electric fence around your pasture to keep predators out? Do horses use the pasture? (in which case, they may help with some predator control???)

You could go with cattle panel walk in style. or build a shorter tractor that is 2 - 3' tall. My most recent build was done in panels, connected with nut/bolt/ L brackets, and used lawnmower wheels. It gets the job done, but I'm not overly pleased with it. I still use it every year, especially when growing out chicks.

Thinking around 25. We have a few atv's that we can use to move it but would prefer to find a design that I could move by hand. Also if we could find a way to suspend the feeders and waters so it would make easier moving that would be great. Will be planning on moving it everyday or every other. Horses in the pasture and we don't have much of a ground predator problem because of my dogs and neighbors homes on either side of the pastures. Have heard of people using old trampolines for their tractors.

 

[lazy gardener]

If you're going to hang feed/water, I suggest that you make your tractor at least 3' tall. You could house 25 meaties in a 8 x 12 CP tractor. It would be a walk in style. (which I'd prefer) Down side is that you'd need your ATV to move it. You could also use it for a coop, storage building, or even a green house when not growing meat birds. I love the multiple purpose use that such a building would provide.