First time: dog pen turned coop

[Jackisews]

I have the setup you are considering.

The first thing I would do would be to take it off the concrete pad so your chickens can scratch and dust bathe. We attached 24" predator proof fencing around all four sides on the ground. We attached hardware cloth to the chain link using hog rings and topped it with chicken wire and a shade cloth. As soon as I am able I plan to add a metal roof. You will notice that the door opens directly to the egg box so I don't have to tromp through a lot of poop. I leave the coop door open during the day for ventilation. We live in North Central Florida.

 

[aart]

I think we’re going to construct a coop inside the run, here’s my preliminary plans for it. There will be a roof over the top. Any ideas on best material to build the walls of the coop with? Plywood? Sheet metal?

Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[m3shelly]

My husband and I recently moved into a home on 2 acres with this old dog pen. I want to convert it to a chicken coop and want to minimize my rookie mistakes. Here’s my plan; I welcome any input and constructive criticism.

First I’ll secure the bottom with hardware cloth, and extend an apron two feet and perhaps bury it. I’ll remove the top and add a roof (need help deciding the best way to do that). I’m going to buy a prefab coop and put it together, it’ll go in the pen. I’m at home most days and plan on letting the hens out of the coop and run so they can be free range. The pen is 10x10 feet (minus the space taken up by the coop).

Thoughts?


View attachment 2564072

Looks a lot like what I did; repurposed a dog kennel that was already existing when I bought my house.

Mine is 12'x12', and attached to the backside of my garage. It had a lean-to roof. I covered everything with hardware cloth, after losing a hen to a weasel, and also changed the roof from a cheap plastic material to metal standing seam to match the house.

I bought a cheap pre-designed coop from Fleet Farm, which is our local big-box hardware and farm store. It was labeled as holding six chickens, lol. I've already increased the size once, and I have four hens. They are light brahmas, so they're relatively large.

I just set the newly updated pre-fab coop in the center of the kennel. The kennel has a concrete floor, so I keep hay on the floor in the winter, and keep it bare in the summer. The hardware cloth extends lower than the base of the fence, but it's not buried due to the concrete. It just bends and creates some downward force.

In the summer, I use bungie cords to lift the hardware cloth, allowing me to hose the floor off under the fencing. I have large limbs on each inner corner for the birds to perch on outside of the coop. They spend most of their time on those limbs or perched inside the coop, when they're not running around the yard when I'm home during daylight hours.

 

[3KillerBs]

so I keep hay on the floor in the winter, and keep it bare in the summer.

In the summer, I use bungie cords to lift the hardware cloth, allowing me to hose the floor off under the fencing.

Bedding is good all year, especially over concrete because it's not friendly to chickens' feet. Wet cleaning a chicken facility is rarely a good idea because dry chickens are healthy chickens.

 

[Lydiaclackum]

Here’s an update on our progress..

We just had sheet metal panels delivered today and they will be hung from floor to near the ceiling with a small wire covered gap for ventilation. They will only cover the back 1/2 of the enclosure. My husband is building an interior wall which will also have sheet metal siding. Our plan is to secure this coop and run, and not close the coop every night. We have friends in the area with a similar setup and their coop doesn’t even have a door on it, so we’re going to do the same. My question is: do I need to add more security over the chain link? I’ve got 1/2” hardware cloth along the bottom 3 feet. And we’ve got poultry netting above the chain link stapled to the rafters. We live near 25 acres of woods that’s kept pretty wild and so if there’s predators to be had, they’re probably not far. Remember, the chickens will be locked up and free to roam the entire enclosure each night.

 

[3KillerBs]

Here’s an update on our progress..

We just had sheet metal panels delivered today and they will be hung from floor to near the ceiling with a small wire covered gap for ventilation. They will only cover the back 1/2 of the enclosure. My husband is building an interior wall which will also have sheet metal siding. Our plan is to secure this coop and run, and not close the coop every night. We have friends in the area with a similar setup and their coop doesn’t even have a door on it, so we’re going to do the same. My question is: do I need to add more security over the chain link? I’ve got 1/2” hardware cloth along the bottom 3 feet. And we’ve got poultry netting above the chain link stapled to the rafters. We live near 25 acres of woods that’s kept pretty wild and so if there’s predators to be had, they’re probably not far. Remember, the chickens will be locked up and free to roam the entire enclosure each night.

Do you have anti-dig skirting?

How do you feel about adding hot wires? I found that electric fence was surprisingly easy to manage. Here's an excellent article about it: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/a-treatise-on-electric-fences-for-poultry.72229/

 

[Lydiaclackum]

Do you have anti-dig skirting?

How do you feel about adding hot wires? I found that electric fence was surprisingly easy to manage. Here's an excellent article about it: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/a-treatise-on-electric-fences-for-poultry.72229/

It’s sitting on a concrete pad, and the HC runs all the way to the concrete. Do I need additional measures to keep digging predators away?

 

[3KillerBs]

It’s sitting on a concrete pad, and the HC runs all the way to the concrete. Do I need additional measures to keep digging predators away?

Probably not in that situation.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I think it may work ok the way you're describing, though I'm not good at visualizing what's not there, so... I assume roosts are going in the section with sheet metal, to prevent predators from simply ripping chickens off the roost?