Coop Placement? - pic heavy

[nmr]

You've given me a lot to think about. Even though it's "winter" here in MA, I didn't think about a backup plan for a deceased animal in winter (that's actually a worry of mine with my cats as they age.)

The permit itself is 4 pages plus 2 pages for notices to abutters (which we don't really have--but I'm confirming with the dept of public heath whether or not I need to inform anyone, as everyone is more than 150 ft away from where we want to put the coop).

Overall it doesn't seem that intense or that they need every T crossed, they do want a "plot plan" but they'll accept hand drawn as long as it has sufficient detail.

Additional questions are how the facility will be secured to prevent animals from escaping, how will the facility be constructed to exclude predators/prevent rodents, and to describe the design and construction of facility floor and grounds (I wonder if that's more for like a goat, etc.) The permit application itself is for general for all types of farm animals.

I think it's a little bizarre, but my city has a restriction on the number of chickens and/or rabbits you can own without a permit. So I can get the 4 chickens that are coming, plus 2 rabbits without a permit--but if I add a chicken or a rabbit, I'd need a permit. I'm not really sure why they lumped chickens and rabbits together lol

I just posted in a local FB group looking for someone who has experienced the permitting process. That was an excellent idea!

I wish my town was Right to Farm like surrounding towns, I wonder how hard it would be to make that happen.


I think we've decided to put the coop on the left side of our workshop, so we'll have access to electricity and the there will be more sun exposure. My husband seems to think digging a path to the coop won't be an issue, so that'll be his responsibility lol

The water in winter has been a big concern for me, I know a lot of people use electric water heater and I've also run into a lot of people who say they don't do anything----so I really don't know. I'm very concerned about anything that could be a fire hazard.

 

[aart]

The water in winter has been a big concern for me, I know a lot of people use electric water heater and I've also run into a lot of people who say they don't do anything----so I really don't know. I'm very concerned about anything that could be a fire hazard.

Unless your home all day to swap out waterers as needed, I'd get a heated waterer.
Any electricity must be handled with care.
Wonders if they have any regs for that?

 

[Ridgerunner]

You use electricity in your home and don't worry about it. As long as it is set up properly it's not a big concern. But not everyone sets it up properly, people burn their houses or other buildings down with heaters. Cats, dogs, or kids can knock heaters over or cause problems, in your coop chickens can. Your coop will probably have really dry bedding in it that will go up in a flash if it ever catches fire. I understand your concern about fire hazards but many people use heated water in the winter. There are several different techniques for that. As long as it is hooked up properly it can be really safe.

I do not heat my water. In winter I use black rubber bowls. If the water freezes I knock ice out by banging it on the ground and refill it. Since it is rubber the bowl does not break.

If the sun is shining the solar heat keeps water thawed well into the teens Fahrenheit. The sun doesn't always shine brightly during the day and never at night, so I do wind up knocking ice out and refilling. A perfect solution? Nope, not even close. But it works for me.