do i realy need a coop...?

[Pharm Girl]

Quote:
x2 I can't believe how much money I've spent on my chickens. I have 8 of them and they can eat! Then there is the lice treatments, DE, cracked corn, heated water bowl, two coops. Expensive eggs!

 

[OldGuy43]

Quote:
x2 I can't believe how much money I've spent on my chickens. I have 8 of them and they can eat! Then there is the lice treatments, DE, cracked corn, heated water bowl, two coops. Expensive eggs!

I also have 8 hens. I'm sorry, (Well, not really sorry.

) but I can't agree with Sassafas or Pharm Girl. I haven't had to treat the cluckers for anything, no special foods, no coop, no extra light, no heat and everything I built with mostly free lumber and other stuff. Yesterday, we got 7 eggs. We keep enough to feed us and the rest we sell. We use a locally produced feed, (scratch and layer) and selling the excess eggs pays for that. The feed costs about $10.00/50 pounds. For litter we use wood chips by the bale from WalMart pets section and only change it out when it gets wet or really dirty. Basically, we get free eggs. Actually we could show a profit as farm fresh eggs bring a premium price around here, but we only charge $2.00/dozen and they all sell with buyers on a waiting list.

Even our start up costs were minimal. Red Sex-Links cost us 1/2 the price of other breeds. Lesson learned = Unless you want to fool with hatching your own chicks don't waste your money getting a rooster. The hens are just as happy without one. Caring for the girls takes up about half an hour a day, tops!

Okay, I lost 3 of my flock to predators early on, but reworking my fencing and the judicious use of a pellet gun has solved that problem. It's only expensive if you let it become so.

 

[Pharm Girl]

Quote:
x2 I can't believe how much money I've spent on my chickens. I have 8 of them and they can eat! Then there is the lice treatments, DE, cracked corn, heated water bowl, two coops. Expensive eggs!

I also have 8 hens. I'm sorry, (Well, not really sorry.

) but I can't agree with Sassafas or Pharm Girl. I haven't had to treat the cluckers for anything, no special foods, no coop, no extra light, no heat and everything I built with mostly free lumber and other stuff. Yesterday, we got 7 eggs. We keep enough to feed us and the rest we sell. We use a locally produced feed, (scratch and layer) and selling the excess eggs pays for that. The feed costs about $10.00/50 pounds. For litter we use wood chips by the bale from WalMart pets section and only change it out when it gets wet or really dirty. Basically, we get free eggs. Actually we could show a profit as farm fresh eggs bring a premium price around here, but we only charge $2.00/dozen and they all sell with buyers on a waiting list.

Even our start up costs were minimal. Red Sex-Links cost us 1/2 the price of other breeds. Lesson learned = Unless you want to fool with hatching your own chicks don't waste your money getting a rooster. The hens are just as happy without one. Caring for the girls takes up about half an hour a day, tops!

Okay, I lost 3 of my flock to predators early on, but reworking my fencing and the judicious use of a pellet gun has solved that problem. It's only expensive if you let it become so.

I agree, you can be quite frugal, and they are just chickens. I'm sure my uncle just chops their heads off when they get sick or diseased. Mine are kind of pets, so they get proper pet care. Lice meds when needed, vet care if needed, feed store feed, and some form of coop/predator protection, not to mention wire fencing, hardware cloth and such. I was shocked going from 4 chickens to 8 how much more feed I have to buy. Double. Yeah, that's math for ya! LOL. It does cost SOME money, so if you have none, I wouldn't take on chickens.

 

[gardendufus]

Eric,

You probably need some kind of minimal structure for roost and Nest Box, but if I lived in your area on a budged I would probably settle for a 2 or 3 sided Pole Barn type structure with the ability to tarp the open areas in bad (rainy or especially windy) weather.

One thing I have used extensively to build my cheap coop is the Home Depot cull boards. I picked up siding appx 3 X 4 at $ .51 a sheet until I had enough to side my coop. Even if you don't start with a "coop" it wouldnt be a bad idea to haunt Home Depot/Lowes and over time (a coupla bucks a trip) pick up enough scrap wood for a future build.

Good Luck with your Chicks.

 

[ariel2222]

WOW. I never posted a thread in a forum and had 4 pages of replays the day after! thank you!
i decided to hear your advice and build a coop. nothing fancy. its going to be 3 sided, and i'm going to use some old wooden doors thet i found. mostly because of the rain.
Looking for designs now. Any ides?

 

[Ariel301]

You might be able to get free pallets from a local hardware store, lumberyard, or feed store. They are great for cheap construction, you can use them to make the frame of your coop. I've even used them for quick fencing when I needed a pen fast. (of course for chickens, you'd have to cover them in wire or something else to keep them from getting out through the gaps) For just a few hens, you could use three pallets (or whatever else) to make three walls, if you use pallets, cover them with a solid piece of wood or metal to keep the birds in and predators/rain out, and put a roof on it that will be rain repellant. Put some nest boxes and a roost perch in there, build a wire run area off the front, and there you go. Cheap, not very pretty, but it works. I've used this style of shelter for birds with good success, and also it is how I house my goats when I need individual enclosures. Check craigslist and freecycle if you need some building supplies, often you can put an add out saying you're looking for scrap lumber or fencing material, paint, or whatever and get it for free or cheap. You can use all kinds of creative things for free nest boxes--old buckets or plastic crates work wonderfully.

Feeding a reasonable number of chickens does not cost much. They should not need constant medication, special supplements, veterinary care, etc. If you're spending a fortune on those things, something isn't right. They don't need fancy or expensive feed either. You can reduce your feed bill by supplementing their diet with scraps from your kitchen; keep a small bucket handy near your trash can, and instead of putting food waste in the trash, put it in the bucket and take it to the chickens once a day. When I was a kid, I raised a large laying flock on nothing but scratch feed (if you went to the feedstore we had at that time, and asked to buy a bag of chicken feed, that's what you got, not layer pellets) and waste food from the elementary school. They were Barred Rocks and they laid so well that we had more eggs than we knew what to do with. No health problems with them either.

 

[OldGuy43]

Yeah, here at BYC folks tend to be not only helpful, but kinda obsessive in a good way. Another thing that not only cuts feed costs, but improves egg quality is greens. Grass clippings, weeds, whatever. If it's green and grows your hens will love it fresh cut and it makes the yolks really rich. Good luck.

 

[Mommy 2 Wee Ones]

Here is my coop built out of pallets, just had to purchase deck screws & cinder blocks & roof shingles.

Got my shingles 1/2 price at Lowes, because the package was broken, used 4 mil plastic sheeting as a vapor barrier between the plywood roof & shingles. Also check Craig's List for wooden shipping crates (transport companies give the older ones away, and are made out of 3/4 plywood.) Remember chickens need ventilation, but do not like drafts.

Check to see if there is a local feed store near you & ask them if you can have the alfalfa scraps that are on the ground. I keep plastic grocery bags in my truck, so when I do get my feed, I can get free alfalfa.

If you are getting chicks, you will need a heating lamp, a large rubbermaid container, they grow fast, some type of lid, either mesh fencing of drill large holes in the container lid. The bales of pine shavings are about $5.00, and will last you past time time your chicks will be inside.

Build your coop & run first, and wait for a while before you get your chicks. That way you can see how the coop & run hold up during the winter, rain, wind, sun exposure. You are in Arizona? Make sure your chickens are a Heat Tolerant breed, that the coop is close to a water source. This summer in Texas we had temps over 110, and I was out with my chickens (they were 6 weeks when they went out), 4 times a day, misting them down, providing them with frozen water bottles, to keep their water cool. And blocked off the East side of their run with a tarp to protect them from the sun. My run is also under a large oak tree, so there was some additional shade. But they were panting for 3 months till the heat broke.

All it takes is one unsuspecting predator to find it's way in, and your chickens are gone.

My hubby calls me Mrs. Anel, because I am the Queen of lists and make sure everything is planned before I start. Am working on my spring garden plans now, making lists of all the building supplies I will need, and am calculating the cost, and seeing what I can find online for free.

You will need, if you are going to get 8 hens, 50 lb bag (when laying size) about every month, a little less in the summer if you let them free range. Get the pellets when they are older, less waste. Chick Start for the first 16 weeks, see how a 25 lb bag will do for starters.
Pine shaving, and feed, should run you no more than $20.00 a month. You can make your own Flock Block, type it in the search engine above, a lot of great recipes.

But, Plan, Plan, Plan, before you get the little fuzzy butts.

 

[Judy]

Here is a whole thread of hot weather coops. https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=163417

I agree, the more breeze and shade, the better, for the hot months. A lot of (or most) people where I live house them like welasharon does, no real coop, maybe use a tarp in the coldest weather. You don't need a coop for predator protection -- if you use hardware cloth, which ain't cheap. I'd put my money in wire rather than a building in that climate, if you want good predator protection. Critters like coons and fox are definitely in the suburbs these days, and chickens will attract them.

 

[fowlsessed]

I agree, you can be quite frugal, and they are just chickens. I'm sure my uncle just chops their heads off when they get sick or diseased. Mine are kind of pets, so they get proper pet care. Lice meds when needed, vet care if needed, feed store feed, and some form of coop/predator protection, not to mention wire fencing, hardware cloth and such. I was shocked going from 4 chickens to 8 how much more feed I have to buy. Double. Yeah, that's math for ya! LOL. It does cost SOME money, so if you have none, I wouldn't take on chickens.

Not to drag on about this, but I think there are generally two keys in the matter of cost when it comes to chickens, the breed and whether or not they are free ranging. I read in storeys' quide to raising chickens that (and these numbers are approximate) a bantam will eat half a pound of feed per week, a light breed two pounds and a medium to large breed 3 to 4 pound a week. Not to mention, I chose bantam breeds lol (I don't eat their eggs or meat, I just like raising them. And selling the next generations seems to pay for the "hobby") Also, if you free range them you don't need to spend money on grit, crushed oyster shells and really expensive feed, or the veggies and hay some like to provide. And if you wanted to you could mix 25 pounds layer pellets with 50 pounds scratch feed to stretch it, but I really don't think it's necesary. Scrach grains and kitchen scraps is all you need for a free ranging flock(if they have enough room). And then you have the problem of predators with a free ranging flock, I think there are three ingredients for this. Good dogs, a gun and a safe place for them at night (and in the day) the major thing that this recipe doesn't take care of are the raptors, it's illegal to shoot them and dogs don't scare them. find a fool proof solution for dealing with them in a free ranging flock, and you'll be rich. lol