I have this dog kennel that the dog no longer uses because he now has a doggy door and prefers his inside bed.
It's inside dimensions are 94" x 45" and the sides are 36" with the highest point in the peak being 51". The attached dog house is 45" x 24" and the roof is 28" sloping down to 23". The floor is metal bars supposedly so dog poop will go through but none of our dogs ever went potty in there!
There was a cat condo built into the peaked roof which is accessible to the outside but could be sealed and a door could be installed on the inside but I don't know if it's very usable as chicken space.
From the inside. They would need a ladder and probably just use it to nest. It's the piece with the triangle front.
There is an opening on each side on top off the walls, between the rafters for ventilation if I seal this thing up but I don't know if it's too much or not enough.
You can see the rafters sticking out above the wire and below the roof leaving an opening of about 3" the length of the kennel on both sides.
So here is what I'm thinking about. Put an Pullet-Shut automatic door in where the door is now. Pull all the wire sides and replace with a finer gauge wire that raccoons can't stick their little arms through and is mink proof. Some sort of removable solid siding for the winter months, with windows? Make one end of the dog house removable for nesting boxes? or build another nesting box on the outside of the dog house and let chickens live in the dog house, too?
For the floor I've been thinking about building up the sides to about 8" and putting a fine wire mesh down then covering it with 6" of deep litter. Any thoughts on that? Seems like it would dry from both sides then, reducing odor and should insulate well being so deep.
Our yard is surrounded by a 4' chain link fence and I would like for the birds to have free range. We live on a rural lake but on normal sized lots (50' x 130') Our neighbors are chicken friendly but I would like the birds to stay in the yard where they are more protected. Breed recommendations? Maybe that's another thread! How many chickens would be too many in this size coop? We're thinking on 4 for our lot. Wife says no roos but I may sneak one in.
Anyway, I can build but I would like some suggestions on this conversion. Any help will be much appreciated. Scott
It's inside dimensions are 94" x 45" and the sides are 36" with the highest point in the peak being 51". The attached dog house is 45" x 24" and the roof is 28" sloping down to 23". The floor is metal bars supposedly so dog poop will go through but none of our dogs ever went potty in there!
There was a cat condo built into the peaked roof which is accessible to the outside but could be sealed and a door could be installed on the inside but I don't know if it's very usable as chicken space.
From the inside. They would need a ladder and probably just use it to nest. It's the piece with the triangle front.
There is an opening on each side on top off the walls, between the rafters for ventilation if I seal this thing up but I don't know if it's too much or not enough.
You can see the rafters sticking out above the wire and below the roof leaving an opening of about 3" the length of the kennel on both sides.
So here is what I'm thinking about. Put an Pullet-Shut automatic door in where the door is now. Pull all the wire sides and replace with a finer gauge wire that raccoons can't stick their little arms through and is mink proof. Some sort of removable solid siding for the winter months, with windows? Make one end of the dog house removable for nesting boxes? or build another nesting box on the outside of the dog house and let chickens live in the dog house, too?
For the floor I've been thinking about building up the sides to about 8" and putting a fine wire mesh down then covering it with 6" of deep litter. Any thoughts on that? Seems like it would dry from both sides then, reducing odor and should insulate well being so deep.
Our yard is surrounded by a 4' chain link fence and I would like for the birds to have free range. We live on a rural lake but on normal sized lots (50' x 130') Our neighbors are chicken friendly but I would like the birds to stay in the yard where they are more protected. Breed recommendations? Maybe that's another thread! How many chickens would be too many in this size coop? We're thinking on 4 for our lot. Wife says no roos but I may sneak one in.
Anyway, I can build but I would like some suggestions on this conversion. Any help will be much appreciated. Scott
