Photokitty
Chirping
When we got our flock added to recently it was time to upgrade our 7x7 shed. Our old setup was... homely but just wasn't going to work. Thankfully I live on a farm that has raised chickens for over 100 years. There was a trapper/chicken coop on the farm with some unique resources.
First thing that had to change was the sliding door. I used a cutting board and a pulley mechanism. So I upgraded to a much larger door (16x18 hole using a 18x24 cutting board). It is great when they leave en masse in the morning.
Next thing to address was the inside of the coop. I needed more roosting space and nesting boxes... quickly. The roost was form the old chicken coop. The original cross beams are from the 1910s and have been used by chickens ever since (except the last 15 years). The nesting boxes on the bottom were from the old coop as well and are about 25 years old from an old Coor's beer shipping box (FIL was a driver for them). My husband loves the old with the new being mixed.
Lastly, the run door. Oh my, that was needed! You can see in the first picture a brown bowed thing leaning against the run... that was the old door! I used an old clasp from the shed that is sitting behind this run and a new hasp on the bottom. Because I added a longer beam on the side I could lift my bird netting so I can actually stand up in the run! I am 5'7 so I needed the head room!
Next spring I am upgrading the coop with all wood framing that is 7ft tall, I have sebrights that like to fly into the netting and roost on the gables.
First thing that had to change was the sliding door. I used a cutting board and a pulley mechanism. So I upgraded to a much larger door (16x18 hole using a 18x24 cutting board). It is great when they leave en masse in the morning.
Next thing to address was the inside of the coop. I needed more roosting space and nesting boxes... quickly. The roost was form the old chicken coop. The original cross beams are from the 1910s and have been used by chickens ever since (except the last 15 years). The nesting boxes on the bottom were from the old coop as well and are about 25 years old from an old Coor's beer shipping box (FIL was a driver for them). My husband loves the old with the new being mixed.
Lastly, the run door. Oh my, that was needed! You can see in the first picture a brown bowed thing leaning against the run... that was the old door! I used an old clasp from the shed that is sitting behind this run and a new hasp on the bottom. Because I added a longer beam on the side I could lift my bird netting so I can actually stand up in the run! I am 5'7 so I needed the head room!
Next spring I am upgrading the coop with all wood framing that is 7ft tall, I have sebrights that like to fly into the netting and roost on the gables.
