Everyone is discouraging me

[mortie]

Yeah I am just looking at pictures of coops but when I go to build, I was going to change the design to suit my needs, such as making one that might accommodate deep litter.

I have an old oven I gave about 2 seconds of thought to gutting and turing into a coop lol.

 

[Ridgerunner]

It’s not the chickens that stink, it’s the poop. Dry poop won’t stink but wet poop will. The more concentrated it is when it gets wet, the worse it stinks. Sometimes if it gets too thick, it just won’t dry out. So you have a few methods of controlling the smell.

Don’t allow the poop to build up. A droppings board under the roost works great. More space when they are roaming helps spread it out or use sand and scoop it out. Another trick is to feed them some treats like corn in the bedding. They’ll scratch around in it keep it spread out. That helps the bedding dry too.

It’s really hard to keep a run totally dry, though sand drains really well. But take great care to keep your coop dry.

Be careful where you put the coop and run. Do not put it in a low spot where water drains to it or water stands. It needs to be put where any water that gets in drains out so put it in a high spot or build a high spot. A French drain might help if the water has someplace to drain to. A real common strategy for someone in your situation is to build a base around the run and fill that with a few inches of sand. That really works well.

Slope any roofs or use gutters so any rainwater flows away from the run, not to it.

Have a strategy to deal with the poop. I really like composting but if the poop gets too wet and too thick, it can stink or even draw flies to lay their eggs in it. It seems a shame to send it to the landfill, but that might be your best option.

To find chicks or point of lay pullets, try finding your state thread in the “Where am I? Where are you!” section and chat with them. Or maybe you can find someone to split an order with.

 

[mortie]

The coop plans are pretty close to what I would have built on my own so I will probably refer to them when it comes time. I have no concrete idea in my head of how I will build it so that helps a bit. I agree, some adjustments will be needed.

I have a wooden box made out of pallets that we've kept kindling in and if I add another side to it and cut out a door, it will make a fine starter coop for young birds. I am only allowed to have 4 over 8 wks old and I need to look back at the rules about how many I can have under 8 wks just in case my chicks actually do hatch.

 

[mortie]

Good tips, thank you!

 

[mortie]

This reminds me, I should go see what my incubator is doing...I am using this week to get the feel of the thing and make sure it's working well. My eggs are coming sunday.

 

[Plough]

I have a coop of approximately the same size as you have an idea for. I have three larger breed hens. Only smell as stated above outside the coop is wet stuff. As for the coop itself, there is a smell. Its not too strong, but there is. The more you tend to the cleaning the less it will smell. Its really not a strong odor in the coop, and standing right next to the coop with the lid closed I cant smell anything.

They may have associations with poultry from commercial operations. Those do stink; 10,000 birds in one building is gross. That is why its called foul. But keeping 3 hens in your backyard is not likely to be bad at all.

 

[mortie]

^ this is what I was hoping to hear. I figured it was just like anything else, and there must be a way to do it without a big smell problem. I think it will be okay, I'm just a little nervous because I've never done this before and everyone gives me the weirdest look when I tell them I want to do this.

 

[theoldchick]

3 chickens? Heck, that's nothing. I've smelled cat poop that'll back you up quicker than chicken poop. Everyone has given you good tips. My only advice is to get your routine going stick with it.

 

[Plough]

Same thing for me. People were like, "your what?" My mother was the only one who was fairly interested in it as she is a retired teacher and had raised chicks/ducks in the class room for years to teach about the life process from egg to adolescent, then would donate them to a farmer friend. I was in the same boat about not knowing what to do as well (city boy). I would get a book that you feel comfortable reading and feels in depth and read up on here.

Just like any pet, the less you care for it the smellier it is. The more you take care of it, the less it smells.

Beware the desire for more though. I agree with those people that say go with as big as your willing to go. If you get in to it, you probably will want to go bigger eventually. That being said, I was happy that I went with the coop that would "fit 4 hens" (really its barely 3, and that's with an extended run area) for about 6 months. I am now up-sizing to a coop I designed and built for 12+. It is great fun, productive, helpful with weeds and pest bugs, a good source of compost for said garden, and also a great source of laughs watching the birds interactions/actions.

 

[mortie]

Thanks everyone for the advice!

I totally understand the desire for more...That's how I ended up with 3 saltwater aquariums (all plumbed together and into my basement

). Legally I can only have 4 and I don't want to push it because chicken keeping is pretty new in my city and they were reluctant to even allow it so I don't want to ruin it for everyone. When the snow melts I will see how much space i have to work with and go from there. I'll build what I can and then put however many chickens will fit. I don't want to crowd them, I want them to be happy and healthy - they'll need to be because our winters can be fierce. This one has been especially bad. Out of the last 20 days I would say that at least 10 have been sub zero and most of those in the negative double digits (we're talking with windchill here). I'm selecting birds that can withstand cold weather for sure.