Does it need a door?

[FarmDreams]

Good morning,

hubby just finished our first coop last week and by the end of this week our girls are suppose to move in. Now I am wondering, the little house with the nesting boxes...will I need a door for it to close that at night or is it okay the way it is. I thought it's better if they can decide themselves when to go in and out since they are safe there anyway. I'd greatly appreciate any thoughts

 

[CityClucks]

Looks great to me! As long as the entire setup is predator proof, I don't think you need a door on the coop part. How many hens do you have?

 

[FarmDreams]

Thanks for the quick reply! I will be having 3 bantam leghorns, so I think they should have plenty of space. The whole thing is 8x4.

 

[MamaJohnson]

Beautiful little coop! I'm jealous. Mine is still in the "framing" stage... we've got 3 walls and floor framed, and the windows are in. And it's taking forever.

Hubby is a good man, but a busy man. And if I get the tools and try to hack it out myself it's gonna look like a trainwreck. So patience is the name of this game...

 

[patandchickens]

Chances are pretty high that raccoons, loose dogs, and coyotes could rip right through that chickenwire there; and weasels and rats can go straight through it (if you are in the city, probably no weasels, but they can be around in semi-rural or countryside areas without you having any idea they're there til the dead chickens).

Also, if you do not shut them inside, they may well decide to sleep in the run, and a raccoon can reach right thru the 1" mesh and rip out handfuls of living chicken, not a pleasant thing.

Personally, I'd replace the wire with strong hardwarecloth (no larger than 1/2" mesh) and leave the chickens loose (b/c the house part is so tiny, dark and underventilated); if you want to shut them in at night you might consider some alterations to the house part e.g. enlargement and windows with some vents.

Can I also suggest you remove the ramp entirely? It is preventing them from being able to USE a lot of the floor space of the "run" (since they cannot get underneath it) and they will have zero trouble just hopping up to the doorway without it.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[mylilchix]

Where in CO are you located? I'd be worried about the girls getting cold.

Sonja

 

[FarmDreams]

I am in Colorado Springs. The only thing that could get in our yard is a raccoon, weasel or rat. No way anything else.

I guess we will add the door and a side door as well. As far as light, it might be hard to tell from the pic but the very roof top has no wood, but something like plexiglass. So there comes additional light in from there.

Thanks so much for all the advice and tips. Even though hubby is not gonna like having to work on it again, but better it is

 

[mylilchix]

I think having a small door will help. It'll give you piece of mind and it'll help keep the weather out. Has it started snowing at your house yet? We're getting dumped on!!

Sonja

 

[silentrunning]

A good rule to remember is: chicken wire is to keep chickens in, not preditors out. I learned this the hard way.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Oh, I didn't see that before but now that you point it out, hey, CLEVER

Skylight (probably not excessivly overheating) *and* flashing all in one. Neato!

Pat