Coop in Progress...looking for suggestions

[dltolle]

Here are a few pics of our coop in progress. With all of the research I've done, I somehow missed the part about the roosts being above the nesting boxes. I don't think we are too late to make any changes in the plans, but wanted to see what you experts think about our ideas.

As of now, we have 13 chicks. We are still waiting to see how many are roosters. The plan was to have 10-12 hens. We live in city limits. We don't have any laws saying we can't have roosters, but we want to keep our neighbors liking us. The coop is 4X8. We know its a little on the small side, and were hoping to be able to maximize the 2 levels of use idea.

Backside of the coop...Beginning of the nesting boxes on the left, and on the right will be poop trays that can be removed from the outside.



Here is the front/side view of the coop. We didn't originally plan on a huge window, but it was really cheap/recycled.



Here's our concern. We had originally planned on having this roost as the highest. Does anyone foresee an issue with adding another lower roost here? It would be closer into the back left corner. We are also planning on blocking off the nesting boxes to start with.



We are also questioning the use of the lower area. We have thought about adding more roosts down there, but now thinking that may not be the best...??? We could just leave it open for roaming space on the days where they won't be able to be outside. We also thought about closing that in for food/supply storage. Any ideas??? There will be a walk from floor to second level here, in addition to the walk to the run.


Here's another idea we are playing with. Another roost could go here, but we'll have to figure out some sort of poop catching since this wasn't an original thought. Is this too high? Any other problems with this being here?


Thank you so much for any help/suggestions! We're obviously first timers, but I think the hubby and our 3 boys are doing pretty good! If you see anything else that looks like it might be a problem, please let comment away...

 

[Tdub4chiks]

I'm no expert, but I believe chickens like a flat roost, not a round one, like a 2 x 4 or 2 x 6. I hope the more experienced chicken people comment on that. Otherwise, the coop looks awesome. Good Job.

 

[dltolle]

You know, I have seen mostly flat roosts. We just picked these up at the restore here for cheap and thought they'd be perfect. I'm curious to see what others say about that too. It would be easy enough to change them if necessary.
Thanks for your input!

 

[thatstevesmith]

From what I've seen, they could care less one way or another lol...

We gave them an old console radio to climb in, but they just roosted on the decorative back part of the lid...

 

[duckinnut]

Ideally you want a round one that mimics a tree limb or perhaps a branch off a tree. But chickens are not to particular and will roost on what is available. Mine roost on 2" square balusters with rounded edges. Won't you don't want is them roosting on a 2x4 on the 4" side. The need to grab with their feet.

 

[JackE]

Ideally you want a round one that mimics a tree limb or perhaps a branch off a tree. But chickens are not to particular and will roost on what is available. Mine roost on 2" square balusters with rounded edges. Won't you don't want is them roosting on a 2x4 on the 4" side. The need to grab with their feet.

I'll disagree, Chickens, basically being ground birds, don't have feet like a regular flying bird. They are better served by a wide roost, like a 2X4 wide side up. Why do they need to grab with their feet? Nothing is going to blow them off in a coop, and I don't have any problems with them falling off.

 

[ECBW]

For me, part of the fun of this hobby is building and improving the coop. I still constantly look to experiment and better my two coops. So yes, factor in changes after the flock takes occupancy to suit their particular needs

By the way, there seems to be no wrong way. The chickens' reaction will tell you if it is working or not. For example, 12x12 vs community nests, you will find believers swearing by either. I have even seen a coop with triangular nests.

 

[CarolJ]

I think your coop looks great. My chickens roost on 2" square posts - and do great. When I was having my coop built, I put in a couple of platforms. It adds to the square footage since they have the space under the platform and on top of the platform, and the chickens really seem to enjoy the different levels. It also provides a place where they can get away if any of the others get aggressive.

 

[duckinnut]

I'll disagree, Chickens, basically being ground birds, don't have feet like a regular flying bird. They are better served by a wide roost, like a 2X4 wide side up. Why do they need to grab with their feet? Nothing is going to blow them off in a coop, and I don't have any problems with them falling off.

So we can agree to disagree. If they are ground birds why do we give them roosts? Isn't in their DNA to get up off the ground to avoid predators? Much like a wild turkey which is predominately a ground bird and only spends night in a tree on roost. I suppose its all a matter of opinion.

I just try to duplicate to what their natural instincts are.

 

[CorinneP]

Your Coop is looking great ...