Detachable run for coop question

Tvol

Hatching
5 Years
Apr 27, 2014
2
0
7
Hello everyone

I have an idea I'm sure it’s not an original one but I can’t seem to find any pictures or in depth discussion Pros and cons I'm thinking of building a coop and have a detachable run so that I can rotate the run around the coop as need the chickens would exit from the bottom of the coop all sides would have a door that would access the run. One of my questions is how long does it take chickens to tear up an area? how long and wide would I need to make the run for say up to 15 chickens that I could keep some grass going at all times? I would appreciate any help or ideas

Here is a picture of the basic idea I'm thinking of



 
Rotating would depend on a lot of different factors, and would vary throughout the year through the various seasons. The temperature in your area, the type of grass, amount of rainfall, and how many chickens you have are all factors. Plus, it would depend on how much you supplement feed, and how good your breed of chicken forages. Your best bet would be to just keep an eye on them and rotate them when needed. After time, you may get a better timeline established. Here is my idea on how to make your rotation a little easier than physically rotating the run:


This way on any given day you can just open a different door. Depending on daytime predators in your area this could be just standard chain link fencing. And, can be set-up to accommodate your current lot size. You might be able to throw up a simple lean-to as well for weather protection, food, and water source.
 
I appreciate your input the reason I was thinking of doing it the other way less materials and cost.just don't know how feasible it is.it sounds good in theory but if I cant keep them on some grass its all for nothing.I do plan on supplementing with feed
 
This is a great idea if you can make it work. Is the building site completely level and even all around? It would be tricky to build a run that would sit flat and level in four different spots and still line up to the doors. (I live where it's crazy hilly and rocky, you might live somewhere with vast flatland) :)

I would think 15 birds would decimate a good sized run pretty darn quickly. I have a 250sqft run that my 7 hens can clear in about 3 days. Your run would have to be BIG, which would also complicate the mobility.

I would really like to see it work for you!!
 
I have 5 juvenile chickens in a ~4x8 temporary pen during the day, they spend about a half day out there.
The grass was just about gone after a week before I moved the pen. Most the grass looks to be coming back, but some of it is not.

As said above, there's no magic numbers, but they can tear up the ground incredibly fast and there soon will be nothing growing there even if you feed a regular ration.
I think the high nitrogen of their feces also effects the plants growth....and not in a good way.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom