I am soon to be a first time chicken owner. I built a coop or cage, which I'll have to describe for now (pics to come after I get the space cleaned up a little). I took a large wooden table (about 4x8') and put it in the corner of my barn. The barn is a cinderblock structure, half underground, like a walkout basement is. It is in the southwest corner. On the south wall is a window (about 5 inches above the surface of the table sans litter) which is on hinges. I put it on so that it could be opened and secured from the outside, and the opening is large enough for me to lean in from outside and do daily stuff, like changing the water. The other two sides of the table I put up hardware cloth from the table edges to the ceiling beams. Both of these sides can be opened up for maintanance. The barn has two more windows and a door, all of which can be opened for good circulation, or closed to keep out the cold. I think this will be a good enclosure for the 3-4 birds I plan to have. I do welcome your thoughts on it, especially once I can get pictures up.
But my question of the moment is about the outside. The window is a few feet off the ground from the outside. I can open it and prop it to keep it open, and there will have to be a ramp to let the birds in and out. But I was picturing just having it come straight down into the yard, for those times when the chickens and I are outside together. We have about 3 acres, none of which is fenced, although the neighbors are few and accomodating. There are certainly other animals living in the yard that will eat chickens. I don't think I can free-range them except under supervision, and besides, I have plans for where I want them to do their chicken thing. Can I built a fenced in area (probably a dome of some sort, because we have hawks) that is nothing but that and take the chickens out of the coop in the morning and plop them into the fencing for the day? Do they need to have a structure attached to a run so that they can go easily from one to the other? Will they need access to things like the nest box during the day? I do plan to set up a waterer and feed and make sure they have shade (and cover too, if there is a chance of rain) in the fenced area. But the coop I built would, under these conditions, be for night and bad weather and not available during outside time, unless they are exploring the yard with a person nearby. Since I've only seen coops with attached runs and portable designs that include housing, I wasn't sure if a stationary house and a portable yard are a bad idea.
--Caren
But my question of the moment is about the outside. The window is a few feet off the ground from the outside. I can open it and prop it to keep it open, and there will have to be a ramp to let the birds in and out. But I was picturing just having it come straight down into the yard, for those times when the chickens and I are outside together. We have about 3 acres, none of which is fenced, although the neighbors are few and accomodating. There are certainly other animals living in the yard that will eat chickens. I don't think I can free-range them except under supervision, and besides, I have plans for where I want them to do their chicken thing. Can I built a fenced in area (probably a dome of some sort, because we have hawks) that is nothing but that and take the chickens out of the coop in the morning and plop them into the fencing for the day? Do they need to have a structure attached to a run so that they can go easily from one to the other? Will they need access to things like the nest box during the day? I do plan to set up a waterer and feed and make sure they have shade (and cover too, if there is a chance of rain) in the fenced area. But the coop I built would, under these conditions, be for night and bad weather and not available during outside time, unless they are exploring the yard with a person nearby. Since I've only seen coops with attached runs and portable designs that include housing, I wasn't sure if a stationary house and a portable yard are a bad idea.
--Caren