First coop advice

[Schumacher]

If you have standard size hens the oldest i ever lost a chick to one of my cats was 9 weeks old. Once the chicks are fully grown at 12 weeks you shouldnt have a problem, unless they're bantam breeds.

2 sapphire gems, 1 red rock, 1 buff orpington, 1 barred rock, and 1 silver crested polish... this year.
But our tom cat brings us rabbit heads instead of mice.. he's tough! So hopefully all will be okay!

 

[Rose Quartz]

2 sapphire gems, 1 red rock, 1 buff orpington, 1 barred rock, and 1 silver crested polish... this year.
But our tom cat brings us rabbit heads instead of mice.. he's tough! So hopefully all will be okay!

The only one i'd ve worried about is your polish, they're a smaller bodied chicken and have problems seeing threats. They'll likely stay in a group though so less likely to get attacked. my cats have done that too with the rabbits.

 

[wrathsfarm]

Oh I like this concept! So what's the difference in cleaning a poop board vs the floor?
We actually took out the last 4 feet of workbench to give it to the birds coop... but save the material, so could reinstall it as a poop board with a roost! Oh the husband's gonna kill me for that! and to that, if I want to keep my wall clean, how far away does the roost need to be?

I put roost bars at least 14" - 16" away from wall, but I have roosters. 12" I think would be good for just a layer flock.

Pros to poop boards... No bending over daily. I clean my poop boards daily and floor once a week. Without poop boards they are scattering that waste much more around the coop. Most of your poo in coop is at night being that they are typically out in the run or free ranging thru out the day.

Also if you note the ledge on the main face of poop board acts as a landing pad or another roost for birds, doubling your roost space. That doesn't mean you can add more birds but gives more roost space options for bullied/lower ranking birds.

Some of my birds will actually sleep right on the poop board depending on how their feeling at roost time.

 

[Schumacher]

I wouldn't put the roosts higher than mid thigh height. If they're higher than that it's more likely they'll have bumblefoot problems. Nesting boxes should go lower than the roosts or they'll sleep in and poop in the nests. Also, if you have 1 roost higher than the other they will fight over the higher roost. 2 at the same height would be better. At 4' wide, you should only need 2 roost bars for 6 standard size chickens.

The loft area is more than high enough above where they'll be sleeping for you to add more ventilation up there. If you added 4 more holes with vent covers similar to what's already up there, on that wall, and the opposite wall it would be enough for your 6 hens.

what if i used litter boards under the roost, then they could use it as a step up and down? 18" to litter pan, and another 18" to roost? maybe raise the litter pan to 20-24"? and keep roost at 36?

 

[Schumacher]

I put roost bars at least 14" - 16" away from wall, but I have roosters. 12" I think would be good for just a layer flock.

Pros to poop boards... No bending over daily. I clean my poop boards daily and floor once a week. Without poop boards they are scattering that waste much more around the coop. Most of your poo in coop is at night being that they are typically out in the run or free ranging thru out the day.

Also if you note the ledge on the main face of poop board acts as a landing pad or another roost for birds, doubling your roost space. That doesn't mean you can add more birds but gives more roost space options for bullied/lower ranking birds.

Some of my birds will actually sleep right on the poop board depending on how their feeling at roost time.

i know the walls are going to get dirty, but i don't want them to! lol maybe a roost on each side?

 

[wrathsfarm]

i know the walls are going to get dirty, but i don't want them to! lol maybe a roost on each side?

That might work, but also keep in mind chickens don't always follow our common sense. They might all want to cram on one roost that's favored.

And everything is going to get dirty. Take some nice pics just before adding birds, and save them. You won't see that nice coop again til you repaint...

 

[Rose Quartz]

what if i used litter boards under the roost, then they could use it as a step up and down? 18" to litter pan, and another 18" to roost? maybe raise the litter pan to 20-24"? and keep roost at 36?

My birds have never stepped down to get to the floor. They just take the plunge lol. But they'll probably roost on the widow sill anyway if the roosts arent the same height.

You can just check their feet every 6 months or so to see if they have any scabs. It's better to catch it early and treat bimble foot if they get it. Easier to treat.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Could you provide a pic of this hinged cover your talking about? I'm not following. We are in nw iowa. That window is on the south side, so the rain comes straight in. And winters are brutal. -20s so I'm leery of too much ventilation and not retaining any heat. Plus, you know... new shed, hard to put holes in the walls rights away, lol.

Examples of what I mean:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/the-coop-is-done-now-for-the-run.1381538/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/coop-ventilation.1452812/page-2#post-24868607

@aart has an illustration of how to possibly add ventilation under a gambrel roofline as well.

If you get -20F sustained you may need to add heat, but you still need ventilation to let moisture escape to try and minimize frostbite.

 

[aart]

@aart has an illustration of how to possibly add ventilation under a gambrel roofline as well.

 

[Schumacher]

Examples of what I mean:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/the-coop-is-done-now-for-the-run.1381538/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/coop-ventilation.1452812/page-2#post-24868607

@aart has an illustration of how to possibly add ventilation under a gambrel roofline as well.

If you get -20F sustained you may need to add heat, but you still need ventilation to let moisture escape to try and minimize frostbite.

Oh man, I love that! But we regularly get 25-30mph winds with 60mph gusts and I can see those wings getting ripped right off! For sure something to ponder. Maybe I can do a long skinny flap that won't catch as much wind. I'll have to goo venting options. I originally thought just using one of those round buts that cuts out holes the size of solo cups and adding a screen in its place, but that won't keep the water out. Ventilation, out of everything, is going to be my biggest challenge