First coop - will we regret something this small? (UPDATED)

[hanselong]

Hi! I actually live in Seattle City proper (Northgate) on a 6500 sq. ft. lot.

The law was recently changed in Seattle to permit up to 8 chickens (more if you have the space, I think - as defined by city).

I created my own tractor (see pic at http://downloads.onguniverse.com/TractorPartitionQuestion.jpg) which has two levels where each is just around 2' W x 8' L x 4' H (not including water and nesting area).

From the pic, you can see that I also added several levels of roosting for my 3 chickens (an Easter Egger, Dorking, and Silkie), which they all seem to love.

I also intentionally let in a lot of air into the tractor because (1) I've read a lot of people suggesting more, not less, insulation, and (2) From people's posts and observing my chickens, they really have no problem with cold (even when it snows in Seattle) - but has more problem with heat.

I'm also not concerned with setting up a door between the second ("coop" + nesting area) and first floor ("free range" area) because I can't think of a situation of where I would want to isolate them in only one of either floors.

I'm not sure if you can see it, but I made it so that I can open each individual panel separately of one another so I can access any area that I wish.

Last but not least, I manually place what people normally use as metal racks/shelves on the ground all around the outer perimeter of the tractor to deter predators from digging into the tractor.

All that I bought all brand new materials from Home Depot and I think it only cost me somewhere around $100 (most expensive parts were the wheels and the 1/4" hardware mesh).

At this time I'm trying to hatch a dozen more chickens - when that happens, I'm either going to open all one side of the current tractor and expand it to be 8'W x 10'L or I'll just make three or four more of something similar so I can move them each individually.

Having several tractors would mean segregating groups of chickens, but it would also make it easier for me to move around...

Anyway, just thought I'd share the "solution" I've come up with for myself... ^^

 

[nwtim]

Very interesting. That tractor looks very narrow and tall. Do you have any issues in high winds and is it prone to tipping when moving around? Any idea how much it weighs?

I'm considering having a stationary coop while employing a mobile "run" that can be attached and detached from the stationary coop.

An alternative that I'm seriously considering is one of those "ark" style tractors (similar to the one at http://www.raising-chickens.org/chicken-tractor.html), but I'm unsure about the roominess in the upper level where the nesting boxes and perches are.

Anybody have advice regarding these Ark-style tractors?

 

[ChicKat]

Hi nwtim,

For some reason, I find your quest of chicken accomodations fascinating. I hope that you do post what you end up with...because it will be very interesting, and you are doing a lot of research that others could possibly benefit from.

Here are a couple of ideas for you to consider too:

Eglu
http://www.mypetchicken.com/catalog/chickens/Eglu-Go-p790.aspx
easy to assemble, predator proof, easy to clean, accomodates 3 very comfortably cost $245 -- perhaps could find a used one because they last a long time-- but hold resale value so used ones are still expensive. No need to repaint etc. Add the run and it is more, but that run that one of your posters here put in pict would also be an option when you want them not to be free ranging but still have outdoor access.

EggCart'n
http://chickencoopwizard.info/chicken-houses/the-egg-cartn-chicken-tractor

whoops--> here's a better link for Egg Cart'n http://www.eggcartn.com/photos.htm

not as familiar with this, but it looks like they incorporated some very good ideas. Pricey, (there are a couple of versions -- one for the deck of the house is the least expensive of the 4 models that they have)

tons more here
http://www.randallburkey.com/Chicken-Coops/products/332/

Of consideration too--- If you are getting chickens for both eggs and pets.... If you got three hybrids, they tend to be smaller...and they lay an amazing number of eggs. I have 3 chickens one of which is a 'gold comet'. This little bird is friendly and has laid a giant egg every day for the past 38 days in a row. If I had 3 like her, I would be getting a dozen and a half eggs per week.

 

[hanselong]

Ah ic - I'm more used to calling those the "A-Frame" tractor.

I have no idea how much it weighs - it's quite heavy, but still moveable by just a single person (me) over my bumpy back yard - of course I only ever need to move it a few feet at a time once every couple of days, though; I imagine that if I have to move it around for long distances, it could be burdensome.

With regards to wind - almost every time we have somewhat strong winds here in my neighborhood, some tree branches would fall over a power line thereby causing some kind of outage somewhere near the neighborhood. However, during times of strong winds like that, I have not noticed the tractor move/wiggle at all - perhaps because it's such an "open" design?

With regards to tipping while moving - if I put the proper leverage on it, yeah, it could tip. However, as it is designed currently, I would actually have to try and put some effort into tipping it before it'll tip over.

I initially wanted to make the A-Frame tractor, but, being a first-time chicken owner at the time, wasn't sure if there would be enough room on the second level. Further, I wanted to make something that could fit through the gate in case I want to move the tractor to the front yard for whatever reason. Lastly, the multiple roosting levels were intentional - because at first my Silkie can't jump as high as the other two (much) bigger hens to reach the higher roosting places - so I wanted to accomodate her; the net effect is that the chickens seem to enjoy picking out their own spots in the tractor to roost although they still huddle together when it's colder.

In retrospect, I think now I wouldn't be opposed to making an A-Frame tractor that has a dimension of 6' W x 8' L at the bottom. I designed mine the way I did because I wanted the tall vertical clearance for my chickens - so they can jump around and stretch out their wings for a bit; however, they don't seem to care that much about the vertical clearance as far as I can tell. Also, they don't seem to mind narrow places (I think I have too much room in their "nesting" area).

I did consider a stationary coop + mobile run idea but scrapped that because I wanted something that's easy to clean (time is a premium) - my current design is such that the chickens poop on the grass for the most part, leaving most of the shavings/straw on the second level clean. Also, when I do need to clean the second level, it's tall enough that I don't have to bend down a lot to shove old shavings/straw out and into the compost bin (I open both sides of the tractor's second level, put a container/bin on the other side, and just push things into the bin). I also didn't want to encourage bugs and/or rodents to make a home in a stationary coop, which may or may not be an issue for you.

One downside to having such an open tractor is that insects tend to get inside of it and take refuge when it's raining - so it's not unusual to see mosquitoes "hiding" underneath the roof of the tractor. I was concerned at first that it would encourage flies, but I haven't had any issues so far - like I said, most of the poop goes on the ground/grass and the second level is mostly clean, so...

 

[Chicklette 1]

I have had chickens for just about a year now and 2 things come to my mind when thinking of a coop . First is that even if chickens have a lot of outdoor space, when there it its a downpour or snowstorm or really high winds outside, the hens want to come inside and even though the coop is large enough for sleeping, it may not be large enough for their confinement all day long. The second thing is ease of cleaning. I have a second coop which is a 4x4 from My Pet Chicken and cleaning the inside and the ground underneath it is just a little difficult so make sure you have decent access to all the areas. OK........I have put my 2 cents in and good luck to you.

 

[nwtim]

Okay, I sifted through a number of those triangular two-level ark tractors and tried to incorporate some of the ideas I found into my own design. I've tried to make it about as light as I could without compromising ruggedness too much. For reference, the legs are 2x2's and I'm only putting plywood on the upper half. The back side will be screwed down while the front will have a hinged lift panel below the top foot or so. The bottom will be surrounded by hardware cloth and I'll probably fit a panel or two to block the wind if necessary. I wanted to make it easy to clean out the "shelf". I'm still thinking about the perch, the nesting boxes, and the carry handles.

Please take a look at the representation I've made of my unfinished "plan" and comment if you could.

(click on the thumbnail for larger size)

Thanks!

 

[Theapplechicks]

I haven't read all of the replies so if this seams crazy ignore. I think it's fine! If you plan to let them free range during the day it's plenty of room. I had 8 banties in one that size and they were quite happy and healthy. Now I have obtained more chickens and now in need of something larger so we are getting a dog kennel/run to put them in.

We had a raised childs playhouse looking coop that we kept our original bunch in. It had a wire floor making cleaning easier but I felt it was hard on their feet. It was also hard to get in to change out the water and food and stuff so making sure you can access it is important. The one we have now has a roof that lifts open for easy access to the nesting area but as for the small run, the door isn't quite big enough for me to go through. I can get half of me in! lol! My daughter climbs through if I need her to. The dog run is going to be much easier for me to enter! Problem now is deciding where I want to put it.

Do keep in mind though... once you have some, you always want more! Went from 6 to 15 in a couple years and would love to have more! lol!

 

[bryan99705]

Gather ideas and either build it yourself or have it built. It's amazing how much help you can get with cold beer and a good dinner as payment! I would not go smaller than 4x6 floor inside a stand alone coop because once you add a laying box, a poop board or shelf, and maybe a fountion and feeder, they will be fighting and tripping over each other. Build it with removable panel walls or shutters so they can get lots of air, especially with the rain and high moisture in you area. Consider using a vinyl floor with sand, for moisture control and easy cleaning.

You also might consider going with a 4x10 tractor that is built in 2 levels with wire sides around the entire lower level. That way they can be comfortably contained if locked down, it can be secured at night, and they would be happy to go to lay and roost at night.

Whatever you do, remember ventilation is the key to healthy birds