Finding the balance

[morelcabin]

Your best bet would be to drive over to a couple of farms in your area that keep chickens for food/eggs and ask them to give you an idea how they're set up. Most farmers I know love to take a few minutes to talk to people who want to learn a little about farming. If you go to your local feed store they might point you in the right direction...they know all the farmers:>)

 

[Katy]

Chickens don't need a really fancy place to live. What they do need is a dry, draft free place to get out of the weather. It also needs to be as predator proof as is humanly possible to make it. If you don't do those things for them they are not going to last long. Illness or hungry critters will make short work of them. Most of us don't have unlimited funds to throw at our chickens, but if you're going to have animals either as pets or working animals you owe it to them to make them as safe a home as possible. I agree you need to look at fencing and building supplies as an investment that will last for many years. Whether they're pets or not they need the same basics.

 

[morelcabin]

Do you have any sheds on that property you can convert into a coop? On my old property I converted a greenhouse that I wasn't using, and I free ranged most of the time but had a run as well. when I moved here I bought a used ice fishing shack for $50 and used it until we decided to build the shed we have now.

 

[Jacky'sMamma]

With regard to the fencing... Our Craig's List has a "materials" section and there are always goodies there to be had for a song.

 

[Whistling Badger]

Where does one find a craigslist? I have no idea what that is, but it sounds like something I'd be interested in!

Thanks
T

 

[FrontPorchIndiana]

www.craigslist.com

Have fun!

 

[fullhouse]

Our chickens are fun, but not pets. We insulated and spent more on the coop though because less energy used for wamth by them = better health, less loss (of hens and eggs), and lower feed cost long term.

 

[Whistling Badger]

That all makes sense. Nothing interesting on the craigslist for Wyoming, but we have several friends who are contractors, so materials shouldn't be too hard to scrounge. I'm not too worried about the cold--We can build pretty stout and I have some ideas for keeping them warm. (if it goes like most of my construction ideas, these chickens are in big trouble...)

Tom

 

[Wild Chicken]

I know how starting simple, and being economical goes...........you should see the coop now

I have a husband that loves carpentry and our "little" chicken coop project turned into a weekend long affair and numerous trips to the lumber yard (and bank account

)....and that was 'just' converting an old wood shed!!!

Our chickens are also "working" chickens, but are now living in a pretty cool coop!!!

~Amy

 

[suburbanhomesteader]

I used an 8x6 shed which I got for free and moved to my location (it's really too small to keep 24 chickens, but here in North Texas, they can go outside almost every day of the year.

To it, I attached the "Chunnel", which is a series of horse panels 5' tall x 16' long (2"x4" mesh, very stout wire) supported down the middle by chainlink fence posts and rails. To get an 7.5' wide Chunnel, I made it just barely 6' tall, so I can walk upright. I initially installed 4 panels, then have added to it as I got more money; now it is 10 panels (50') long. Along the bottom, on the outside, I laid 12' 4x4 treated posts, each of which is pegged to the ground with three 16" rebar stakes (one at each end, one in the middle). I attached the panels together with hog rings. If I ever needed to move it, I could probably disassemble the whole thing in 2 hours and move it to a new location. The horse panels should last at least 20 years.

I covered half the chunnel with greenhouse plastic last winter, and placed straw bales so that the north/west wind was blocked. They loved it, and could leave the "hot house" area as wanted or needed. This summer, I have covered the greenhouse plastic with Aluminet, a radiant barrier.

The chunnel is strong enough for a 200lb man to crawl around on! I've seen dogs, coons, possums, and a hawk try to crawl on, reach through, and dig under, to no avail. I am confident that I've done all I could to protect my girls.

Oh, when I move new chicks out of the house, I have a smaller, more weather-protected PVC-framed, 1/4" hardware cloth-covered chicken tractor that is 4' wide x 10' long x 2' tall, which is their home until they're big enough that they can't escape from the 2x4 mesh of the chunnel. The big girls get to know them, and it seemed to make the transition go more smoothly.

My chunnel cost $40 per horse panel and something like $8 for each length of lumber. I cut up one panel to make a door at the end, so I can access the girls from the outside as well as the coop.

If you want more details, email me at [email protected]