Consolidated Kansas

[MsDebD]

Thanks Tara, it seems like every other house in town has an old storage building in the back yard but nobody is getting rid of them. We ended up buying an "easy-to-build-do-it-yourself" 8x10 for our goats. That thing took us all summer and DH isn't going to do another one. I'll keep checking craigslist and Lawrence Buy Sell & Trade for something and if we don't find one by early spring we'll probably go with the hoop coop.

 

[Trish44]

Thanks Tara, it seems like every other house in town has an old storage building in the back yard but nobody is getting rid of them. We ended up buying an "easy-to-build-do-it-yourself" 8x10 for our goats. That thing took us all summer and DH isn't going to do another one. I'll keep checking craigslist and Lawrence Buy Sell & Trade for something and if we don't find one by early spring we'll probably go with the hoop coop.

My main coop for my laying flock is an old storage shed I've had for years, I actually moved it here from Derby when I moved 16 years ago. I have had to put lots & lots of ventilation in it. I started out putting three small shed windows in that open up & down, one of which is in the people door & that one is never closed year round. I added 3 vents to the back because it gets so hot in there in the summer & still it was very hot so I added two larger trailer type of windows that crank out & those are great. I wish I had gotten them in when I first put chickens in there. I usually end up when it's super hot out just leaving the people door open because I have the run out in front of the coop & it has a door that is shut & locked at night. I have seen sheds I would have loved to have for additional coops that were free but you had to haul them off & we don't have a trailer yet to haul anything like that. Just watch Craigslist & maybe you will get lucky, even if you have to drive a ways to get one it might be worth it. I have chickens in dog runs that are covered & have dog houses in them & hoop coops that I winterize. You can keep chickens in a variety of situations & they do fine, they really are pretty tough. Another idea is making a coop out of a big wood crate like they use for aircraft parts to ship them if you can find one of those, they're usually pretty big.

 

[CHIKENROOKIE]

MsDeb,

Picture of reclaimed coop....much larger than the first one I built......total cost is approx 150.00

 

[Frizzled Pink]

I like all the talk about the bantams. It echoes my thoughts about them. But my daughter is trying to talk me into getting her some bantams this year. She has seen some video of the table top showing of the Seramas. They are the funniest little guys. I’ve read a little bit about them. They are very small, so will able to go throw the free range fence. They do not like cold weather, so heated coop. The eggs are a little bigger than quail eggs. It just sounds like a lot of trouble to me.

How are the Cochins to take care of? Winter hardy? Egg size? Do you have to clean feathered feet?

Cochins are generally very easy and friendly birds, very easy for kids to pick up and handle. Mine overwinter in the main coop with the standard size birds, so yes my bantams are with the large size birds. Egg size is normal for bantams meaning smaller that the eggs you see from the store. I just use 2 bantam eggs in any recipe calling for 1 large egg. I am known for washing feet feathers when they are heavy from mud etc but i am not showing birds currently so i am not so concerned with broken foot feathers. I dont have Seramas but see quite a few a shows /fairs etc so that breed seems to be pretty popular for the kids also.

MsDeb,

Picture of reclaimed coop....much larger than the first one I built......total cost is approx 150.00

WOW very cool!



MsDeb,

Good luck on your chicken journey.

 

[KsKingBee]

Those of you using cookie tin water heaters, what size bulb are you using? We tried a 34 watt, burned out after a week, 60 watt seems a bit too high. We are using another 34 watt but it has only been a couple of days.

 

[Prairie Fleur]

MsDeb,

Picture of reclaimed coop....much larger than the first one I built......total cost is approx 150.00

This is adorable!!! I'd love to see some more pics from different angles and maybe even the inside. I'm collecting ideas for a second cool. Shhhhh! Don't tell DH!!!!! I will need something for the chicks I'm planning to get this next spring, guess we'll see.

 

[chicken danz]

Those of you using cookie tin water heaters, what size bulb are you using? We tried a 34 watt, burned out after a week, 60 watt seems a bit too high. We are using another 34 watt but it has only been a couple of days.

I used to use a 60 wt in my cookie tin water heaters and I liked it but I put a ceramic coffee pot saucer underneath it that spread the heat around and kind of protected the bottom. I used a 25 wt on another one and wasn't at all happy with the results but I didn't have the ceramic saucer underneath it. The saucer was my own addition and I honestly think it is a good idea. You get more heat from a less electricity. It gives you a fire safety, and a moisture protector, and it allows the heat to radiate out instead of just sit in one spot. I think if I'd put the saucer under the 25 wt it would have been fine. I'd use long life bulbs if I were you but be sure they aren't teflon coated for strength. Those bulbs made for ovens are really nice for that. They are normally 40 wt I think.

 

[Trish44]

ChickenRookie that is a cute coop. It's made of pallets deconstructed isn't it? I like using pallets if I can for things but I don't like taking them apart. I put together our goat shelter frame from pallets. You can see it on the walls inside but the floor is covered with OSB so you can't see the pallets sitting on the ground. We covered the outside with wood siding that comes in sheets so you can't see the pallets outside. I was given the 2x4s I used for the roof supports & the tin so it really wasn't a very expensive project in the end. I still haven't gotten it painted. I had planned to paint it before winter but ran out of time. I finally did get my breeder coop painted though right before it got too cold to paint any more. I was relieved to get that done.

 

[Trish44]

We got about an inch of snow here. It sleeted some before that but thankfully most of it went north & east of us. I'm glad, I hate the stuff, especially after falling & breaking my leg last year. It's really cold here today though, I don't think with the snow on the ground & as cold as it is the chickens are going to be thrilled about coming out.

 

[chicken danz]

We got a few hours of rain before the snow moved in. So I am sure we have a layer of ice covered by snow. Not a good combination at all. The ground is white but there isn't all that much snow out there. It's what is underneath that is worrisome. The birds aren't out this morning except the geese and they are fighting for spots to get out of the wind. They could just go to the pen by the garage and be fine but instead they are all up by the house. There are some in the greenhouse with the dogs though. Those are the smart ones.
I'm thinking I'll add some cayenne to the feed today to help keep the birds warm.