Chicken Tractor

[oldsoftie]

I've seen some pictures of chicken tractors, and I'm thinking that I may try one this fall for some meaties. Can you share some pictures of your tractor, and tell me what you like, and what you would do differently, with your design?

Do you keep your chickens in the tractor 24X7? Do you have preditor issues, and how do you overcome them? How often do you move it?

Thanks in advance for the information.

Brad

 

[Brunty_Farms]

The last picture is the inside of mine. The lower they are the easier they are to move. I build mine 2 feet off of the ground, this also helps keep the heat in on colder months.

Mine stay in 24/7 until they are processed, they go out to pasture at 14 days. Predators aren't realy an issue as the pens are well built and we also have a Great Pyrenees that protects the flock at night. We also use a skirt of wire that lays flat against the pen and sticks out about 1 foot. Predators walk up to the fence and start to dig under and to their surprise they dig straight into the wire. This also helps keep the birds in when you have a dip in the pasture.

I wish I had more pics of mine, when the weather breaks I will post some.

Good Luck,

 

[jaku]

I have a 10x6, but I'm building a more lightweight 10x10 out of PVC. I built mine heavy to avoid predator issues (I live in the middle of the Michigan woods,) but it's a pain to move around, and I've never had a problem with predators

 

[wisdom_seeker]

I had an issue with predators. They dug under the side and I lost 2 chickens. What happened was the birds would sleep on the "open" end of the tractor in plane sight. By adding a door on the closed in end the predators would no longer tunnel under the tractor. I'm thinking that they don't like to tunnel into an unknown area that they cant see. This is my experience for what it is worth.

 

[playingchicken]

My dad put an electric fence around his at night to keep the coyotes at bay.

 

[Peruvian]

Here's mine

 

[brooster]

ibuilt one like this http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Building+a+Pasture+Shelter.html but mine has a kennel floor, if you clisk on "poultry, there are more designs for chicken tractors.

 

[willheveland]

 

[carress]

willheveland -
I notice that the place you last had that tractor had almost no grass..how long did it take the birds to do that?

How long does it take for your grase to grow back?

 

[willheveland]

Quote:
I try to move them everyday at least,when they are smaller you don't have to move as often.I don't really find them eating the grass.It's mostly from heavy traffic.
It's mostly matted down with manure,but depending on the quality of your yard maybe a week or two to spuce back up.I often sprinkle ag lime on the spot where they were.At the end of the season you can see a trail where the tractor was dragged because of the dark green from all the nitrogen in the manure. Will