Coop Shame

[PastaChickenBoo]

So basically we are getting some weekold RIR chicks soon. Even though they are five weeks away from their coop-ing, I guess I could say, we got a storebought coop from Merax to prepare. It's pretty flimsy and the run is TINY. I cannot expand the run since we don't live in the countryside, and, well, the laws. We are planning on freeranging the hens when we're back from work and school, but we don't want our girls to suffer. A little help on expanding the run?

PS: I really wish we had gone to Home Depot and actually built a coop. Sigh.
Does anyone else have a store-bought coop?

 

[Folly's place]

Can you return it? A garden shed or something similar will work well, with some modifications. Mary

 

[PastaChickenBoo]

No it's already assembled and ready to go.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Not sure what your laws specify but can't you attach a larger run to the existing one? Most prefab coops can be altered somewhat and adding a run is probably one of the easier things to do. Photos and zoning information would help.

 

[rbreininger]

See my post 'Expanded my chicken run - coop is next' for what I did.

We live in the city also. Small town.

The laws my be different. We can have hens but no roosters.

Check the Learning Center for posts on changing laws.

Good luck.

 

[PastaChickenBoo]

Not sure what your laws specify but can't you attach a larger run to the existing one? Most prefab coops can be altered somewhat and adding a run is probably one of the easier things to do. Photos and zoning information would help.

The laws in my area say that the coop has to be 25 feet away from our house and 100 feet from the nearest property.
We are attaching a small, roofed exercise pen made of sturdy metal to the original run. We will also freerange the chickens while home, but I'm just a bit worried that the chickens won't have room to move around.

 

[rosemarythyme]

The laws in my area say that the coop has to be 25 feet away from our house and 100 feet from the nearest property.
We are attaching a small, roofed exercise pen made of sturdy metal to the original run. We will also freerange the chickens while home, but I'm just a bit worried that the chickens won't have room to move around.

Without knowing the layout of your property I assume what you're saying is even if you tried to expand the run you're right up against the legal setback? But the way I'm reading it is the coop has to be 25/100 ft setback, not the run, otherwise you wouldn't be able to free range at all. So if you make the run portable (something that can be dismantled or moved, like a dog kennel, or wire fence panels, or even a wire mesh box on a wood frame) you should be able to use space closer to property line (personally I'd put that segment closer to your house rather than your neighbors, to avoid stepping on toes) and that will give you a lot more room for a run while still keeping the chickens safe.

The larger run doesn't even have to be attached to the coop if you already have that set in place and cannot move it. Like right now I have a temporary enclosure on a side lawn with lots of grass and carry my chickens over and plunk them in there when the weather is nice. The idea is similar to a chicken tractor - plenty of photos under the "Coops" button up top next to "Forum" of chicken tractors, if that might be something you'd want to try.

 

[EricaLee]

I too have store bought coop shame. This was our solution to the shame, I too wish we'd just have built one but thought this "out of the box" idea would be easier. My birds are still inside as well, so I'm not sure on how it's all going to work out once they live there, I posted my own thread with a bunch of questions about that. We made a run the same width as the coop and made it 8 feet long. I do at this point wish we could just build our own coop attached to our run, but $140 is already into the non-returnable store bought coop and I'd need that $$ back to buy lumber.
It is not yet attached to the coop, we will do that tomorrow, hubs is at work today and ran out of light last night.

 

[Folly's place]

We all started somewhere with our chickens! I started with bantams roosting in my barn rafters; "they will be just fine"! After mornings finding body parts scattered around the barn, I learned. My coop has been enlarged and upgraded over the years, including this month, and we're moving on. Again. These cute little dog-house coops should be banned, but they are available, and will be a start. Later, they will work for a broody hen, or isolation for some reason, or bringing in new chicks. Mary

 

[RichM]

I learned a lot from my store bought coop. It was a thin, wholly inadequate structure and way too small, but it also had some ingenious features that I am building into my new coop. Once you know what a coop needs by actually using one, you'll do better next time.