Hi and Happy Valentine's Day!
I'm just going to throw this all on the table since we really don't know where to start for a coop. We just moved here in WI last fall. We're expecting 8 chicks later next month for fresh eggs, maybe adding a few more chickens next year if we're having fun with it. We like the idea of a chicken tractor and would utilize approximately 1 acre (of the 5.25 acre lot) to move the tractor around. Winters here can get bitter cold. Our lot is next to approximately 40 acres of woods and fields... we do see deer and hawks often, and hear coyotes periodically in our yard at night so predators are an obvious concern. I have reviewed numerous wonderful coops on this website and people have great ideas. I've also been reading some books, but I need to "talk" to other chicken folks to get to the bottom of some of these questions...
1. Do people in WI use chicken tractors? It seems that it would work much better in a warmer climate. Would anyone recommend against a tractor for any reason?
2. Many chicken tractors are for a handful of chickens. It seems that once you get to "8 chickens" a tractor seems too big? Can you have a tractor for 8 (maybe expanding to more next year?) chickens without it being too big to move around? Or, is this just too many to feasibly have in a tractor. We don't want to be moving a barn around the yard.
3. It seems if you have a wire floor for the tractor, then what's stopping the predators from giving it 110% every night to get the chickens? I just don't understand how a chicken tractor can be SO predator proof with this type floor, unless I'm completely missing something here. Tractor = mesh wire floor, right? I mean, how can you have a tractor without a mesh floor?
4. If you have a tractor, do you have a small outdoor run that's attached to the tractor? Seems pretty safe, but a pain to move around. Or, just a large fenced area that you move the tractor within? Seems like a lot of fencing for this idea.
5. If the nest boxes (thinking 3) are attached on the outside of the coop where you lift up a little door for easy access to eggs. Then, do you need to worry about the eggs getting too cold when the temps drop outside?
6. Back to flooring... in winter we would need to attach a bottom to the tractor so they don't get cold. Any recommendations on how to do this?
7. Ventilation... are the some basic rules for ventilation? How does the ventilation work in winter when you don't want to cold air drafts?
8. Do you need to have somewhere inside the coop for the chickens to dust bathe in winter? I would think so. Does it get messy? How much extra space to you allow for the bathing area?
9. What is your favorite material for roofing? Seems everyone uses different stuff, but I'm looking for specifically what seems to work well in WI.
10. Any other ideas specifically for WI area?
Thank you all so much!
I'm just going to throw this all on the table since we really don't know where to start for a coop. We just moved here in WI last fall. We're expecting 8 chicks later next month for fresh eggs, maybe adding a few more chickens next year if we're having fun with it. We like the idea of a chicken tractor and would utilize approximately 1 acre (of the 5.25 acre lot) to move the tractor around. Winters here can get bitter cold. Our lot is next to approximately 40 acres of woods and fields... we do see deer and hawks often, and hear coyotes periodically in our yard at night so predators are an obvious concern. I have reviewed numerous wonderful coops on this website and people have great ideas. I've also been reading some books, but I need to "talk" to other chicken folks to get to the bottom of some of these questions...
1. Do people in WI use chicken tractors? It seems that it would work much better in a warmer climate. Would anyone recommend against a tractor for any reason?
2. Many chicken tractors are for a handful of chickens. It seems that once you get to "8 chickens" a tractor seems too big? Can you have a tractor for 8 (maybe expanding to more next year?) chickens without it being too big to move around? Or, is this just too many to feasibly have in a tractor. We don't want to be moving a barn around the yard.

3. It seems if you have a wire floor for the tractor, then what's stopping the predators from giving it 110% every night to get the chickens? I just don't understand how a chicken tractor can be SO predator proof with this type floor, unless I'm completely missing something here. Tractor = mesh wire floor, right? I mean, how can you have a tractor without a mesh floor?
4. If you have a tractor, do you have a small outdoor run that's attached to the tractor? Seems pretty safe, but a pain to move around. Or, just a large fenced area that you move the tractor within? Seems like a lot of fencing for this idea.
5. If the nest boxes (thinking 3) are attached on the outside of the coop where you lift up a little door for easy access to eggs. Then, do you need to worry about the eggs getting too cold when the temps drop outside?
6. Back to flooring... in winter we would need to attach a bottom to the tractor so they don't get cold. Any recommendations on how to do this?
7. Ventilation... are the some basic rules for ventilation? How does the ventilation work in winter when you don't want to cold air drafts?
8. Do you need to have somewhere inside the coop for the chickens to dust bathe in winter? I would think so. Does it get messy? How much extra space to you allow for the bathing area?
9. What is your favorite material for roofing? Seems everyone uses different stuff, but I'm looking for specifically what seems to work well in WI.
10. Any other ideas specifically for WI area?
Thank you all so much!
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