Floor advice for storebought coop

[Travilah]

I purchased a premade hutch from TSC - the Ware Chick-n-Hutch - and so far am quite pleased. It was an inexpensive way to provide a home for the four hens I purchased until I decided if this was a hobby to truly invest in.

Hahaha! I am snagged! However, the little hutch works and I would like to improve it a bit and need advice.

The front panel is wire only, with a door opening - I was thinking I could cover that wire partially with plywood to give girls a little more privacy. Once in a while I will see them perch, but they most often sleep in a pile in the corner. I worry they do not feel secure enough. I did fashion an external nest box (out of a Deli Cat plastic bin, spray painted dark green on the outside and mounted outside the egg hole, stuffed with hay) to allow for more floor space, and they like that as well - four hens = four eggs a day!

So my real question is about the floor. There is a removable coated wire floor that sits above a metal droppings pan. It concerns me that girls are walking/sleeping on wire, which does not allow me to use litter bedding at all. I put some hay in there but it gets dirty fast. Can I take out the wire floor all together and simply put bedding in pan? Will it hurt them to have the floor wire? Has anyone used one of these hutches?

They are only housed in this coop at night; during waking hours they are either wandering in the dog kennel enclosure the hutch is in, or free ranging happily.

Thanks ! Any suggestions are appreciated. I am currently shopping for the next version, but I am hoping I can score an outdoor playhouse to convert - that looks so clever!

 

[Sorin]

Hello! I'll take a shot at your question. I'm not sure if the wire floor is good for long term. I know some people use a hutch like yours to fix broody hens, so I know the wire is fine for a few days, but personally, I would do what your planning to and get rid of the wire. I wouldn't like walking on it and even thought their feet are tougher than ours I wouldn't think it's too comfortable! As far as them roosting, it's good for them to roost, you don't want them sleeping in the pine shavings with all the poop. Just go out after dark and put them on the roost, after a few nights they will take the hint. I had to do that with some I got that were 2 months old when I got them. Good luck!

It sounds like you got it all under control!

 

[Travilah]

I have this weekend off, so if it does not rain (or god forbid SNOW again), I will be out there perfecting their home. The floor of the penned area is dirt, actually is the wonderful soil I dug in last year as a garden, only to discover when the trees leafed out, too shady for plants. Moved as much as I could, and now the hens have that area to play in and scratch.

A second question though - even though they do get out to roam, should I add sand to the penned area dirt floor? Or leave as is? I did set hutch up on blocks, so that it was higher off ground and girls (and feeder) can be placed underneath the hutch.

And the roosting bar - how high? the side boards had two hole heights you could use, one that was a little less than halfway up the side, the other a bit lower so that roost would be closer to the floor. I chose the higher level. They can clearly get there easily, but would they feel too cramped above? Course, if I lower the fllor by removing wire tray, changes heights. . . need to just get out there and experiment.

Thanks!! Just read the BYC thread on hatching out a double yolk, watched video, and am still msiling!

 

[Sorin]

Some people like adding sand in their run, it just depends on you. If you live in a cold climate though, it is not recommended. In the winter if it gets wet it will turn into a frozen rock!

I left mine dirt, I just put a tub with fine sand and dirt in the corner of their run so they can take dust baths.