Farmer but new to chickens

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Dedeemarie

In the Brooder
Apr 26, 2020
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Hi! My husband and I farm together about 1000 acres and have about the same in pasture. Cattle, horses, donkeys, sheep and crops are all something we know. Chickens... are new. šŸ˜€

We are just starting to get stuff together to get some chickens. We have a small grain bin we will be converting into a hen house and will add on the outdoor coop. We know all about predator control with them and prevention of other wild life.

just wondering if anyone else is using a grain bin and would have suggestions about what they have found works best. We plan to cut a long Vent panel about 6ā€™ up and 3-4ā€™ long and cover with mesh to create ventilation during the day time to avoid overheating. (Will bolt it down for Winter). Only plan on about 6-10 chickens and maybe a couple Guinea hens also. Iā€™d like to create different options for them to perch on.... create some using boards about 3ā€™ off the ground but also lean up an old tree we have with several large branches for them to roost on.
 
1000 acres is amazing.

I'm so curious to pick your mind.

I'm just a backyard urban guy. But my dad is a retired veterinarian.

One thing you could probably do is have the land outside where you are housing them partitioned so you could do crop rotation using free ranged partitions planned so that you can use the chickens for field fertilizer.

I'm not sure if there's a standard facility for everything. So its very possible we won't know what to expect. Does the area have electricity? (And how cold do your winters get?) If it does you could rig up something like a fodder growing setup alongside it, or inside it if its more like a coop.

There could be gas and oil instability later this year also from all the things running amok so it might be nice to have the small animals closer to your residence in case you have to be really careful of fuel later this year.

Not sure if maybe we should be asking you for advise in stead if you are real farmers. Most of us are just sort of playing hobbists.
 
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
Your best bet would be to start another thread in the Coop and Run Forum and post pictures of your grain bin for ideas. However you install ventilation, it needs to be open year round as long as it will not blow directly across the birds at roost height.
 

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