For the MINIMALISTS - those who think less is more in chicken keeping - Please help

[GetFitWithKrista]

Wise Chicken Counsel - I need your wisdom. Please see included photos.

We have added our coop door. There is a 12" drop from the top of the door to the floor to accommodate for deep bedding. Can the chickens jump/fly down/up or should we put a platform for them to go onto first and then they can travel their route?

What are your thoughts?

 

[RoyalChick]

Wise Chicken Counsel - I need your wisdom. Please see included photos.

We have added our coop door. There is a 12" drop from the top of the door to the floor to accommodate for deep bedding. Can the chickens jump/fly down/up or should we put a platform for them to go onto first and then they can travel their route?

What are your thoughts?

Yay. Progress!
They can and they will, but they will probably like a doorstep.

 

[3KillerBs]

A doorstep wouldn't hurt -- especially if it's easily moveable -- like a concrete block -- but they *can* jump that far without trouble.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My 12" x 12" pop door is about 12" above the coop floor and maybe 15" above the run floor outside. With bedding, the inside distance is less than a foot. My adult full sized fowl chickens have no problem stepping into the pop door from the run. I often don't even see them hopping up, more of a step up. Mine don't have a problem getting into nests 3 to 4 feet above the coop floor either but there they do flap their wings to fly up as well as jump. I do not have a step for them to use to get into the nests.

Where I have an issue is with baby chicks. They cannot get up that high in the first couple of weeks. After that they can fly up and they dang well better fly if the broody tells them to. So I make steps out of pavers inside and out so the baby chicks can get in and out with the broody hens.

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

I'm in KS and my coop is unprotected (no trees or buildings near by), and it gets WINDY here, year round, so yes we definitely needed the winterizing panels. I really like how the ventilation in the henhouse is all overhead. I did add Premier1 Ultrascreen to the openings on the back (under the roof) to blunt the N wind. It's removable, so will only be up during wintertime. The Ultrascreen still allows air flow, but makes it so the strong wind isn't swirling around in the henhouse (see this thread). My winterizing panels also don't go all the way to the roof - I leave around 2' of it at the top open for airflow (and added Ultrascreen to those open areas too). It did get cold when we had that super freezing week before xmas, and a few of my hens got some mild frostbite (I think from drinking, not from moisture in the coop, as it stayed very dry), and a few had to be brought into the garage to thaw the ice that accumulated on their backs from the condensation on their own breath. But they all survived (including 3 month old chicks!), and if they can make it through that cold snap, I think we'll be good from here on out!

You really thought out your extras. I like that. We've been trying to brainstorm before heading into the next set of instructions. I'm sure the winterizing panels are very much needed since you've got so much wind.

You can technically leave it open since the entire structure is protected with HWC. I just sleep better knowing they are locked up and "out of sight." I'd prefer they get in the habit of sleeping in the coop where foxes, coyotes, racoons, etc can't be eyeballing them all night.

Thankfully we don't have any coyotes and I haven't seen any foxes. Definitely racoons, skunks, and a groundhog, hawks too. We'll have to be extra diligent for a while.

I used pressure treated wood to make the ladder from the henhouse to the run because of this. And the one inside the coop was scrap from the other ladder. It was probably the easiest part of the whole project, so if it rotted and we needed to replace it, it's a quick fix. Also doesn't have to be a ladder made of wood. With only 12" to cover, you could just stack some cinder blocks or bricks to make "steps" (and add/remove as needed based on bedding height).

My husband ended up making a small platform instead of a ladder. He's getting antsy to finish and I don't blame him. He's been very generous with his time helping me. The cinder blocks are a good idea in the case the platform doesn't work. Thanks for the suggestion.

YES YES YES. Can't imagine not having it. I put a thin layer of PDZ on it and scoop it every other day or so. They don't all end up "hitting" the board because they sleep in weird places, but I'd say 80% of the poop ends up on the board (and then scooped out and put into my compost bins, which I then use in my garden). One surprise bonus of the poop board was it gave me a bit of storage underneath. I was mad I didn't get to keep the storage above the nesting boxes, but realized I could put containers of food/treats/grit/etc under the poop board, and the hens leave it alone and it doesn't get pooped on.

Did you end up adjusting your roosts? I think I recall you saying that. It seems like there's not much room under the roosts. How often do you find you have to clean the board? I'm trying to keep my daily/weekly upkeep minimal so I can spend my time hanging out with them.

Thanks again for sharing this info!

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

A doorstep wouldn't hurt -- especially if it's easily moveable -- like a concrete block -- but they *can* jump that far without trouble.

Good to know, thanks. We built a platform but I like the concrete block idea. We have cinder blocks sitting here unused. Too late but that would be good if the platform doesn't work.

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

My 12" x 12" pop door is about 12" above the coop floor and maybe 15" above the run floor outside. With bedding, the inside distance is less than a foot. My adult full sized fowl chickens have no problem stepping into the pop door from the run. I often don't even see them hopping up, more of a step up. Mine don't have a problem getting into nests 3 to 4 feet above the coop floor either but there they do flap their wings to fly up as well as jump. I do not have a step for them to use to get into the nests.

Where I have an issue is with baby chicks. They cannot get up that high in the first couple of weeks. After that they can fly up and they dang well better fly if the broody tells them to. So I make steps out of pavers inside and out so the baby chicks can get in and out with the broody hens.

Helpful info, thanks. They can be quite acrobatic. At 8 weeks old, how high can they fly if their wings are clipped?

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

Yay. Progress!
They can and they will, but they will probably like a doorstep.

I know, right - Progress! These projects always seem like a good idea initially then we get antsy thinking about all the other work that needs to be completed around the house. Almost there....

 

[GetFitWithKrista]

2 Questions, WCC:

FEED
Does anyone make their own feed and is it more cost effective than just buying the already prepared food? I'm having a hard time locating food and bedding sources that aren't 30 minutes or farther away. Is TS a lot more expensive than purchasing through a farm?

@RoyalChick - I'm in south jers. Not sure if you're near these parts but where do you get your food and bedding? I asked on a local FB chicken group but got no responses.

FREE RANGING
At 8 weeks old, can the chickens fit between picket fence posts? Wondering if we can let them out right away or we should keep them in the run for a bit. Also, lets us wait on the extra fence we need to install if we've got some time.

Thanks friends!

 

[RoyalChick]

2 Questions, WCC:

FEED
Does anyone make their own feed and is it more cost effective than just buying the already prepared food? I'm having a hard time locating food and bedding sources that aren't 30 minutes or farther away. Is TS a lot more expensive than purchasing through a farm?

@RoyalChick - I'm in south jers. Not sure if you're near these parts but where do you get your food and bedding? I asked on a local FB chicken group but got no responses.

FREE RANGING
At 8 weeks old, can the chickens fit between picket fence posts? Wondering if we can let them out right away or we should keep them in the run for a bit. Also, lets us wait on the extra fence we need to install if we've got some time.

Thanks friends!

I am in North Jersey.
Almost all my bedding I get for free by raking up leaves and pine straw from the back yard.
Remember I do deep litter and have a very tall hen house with lots of ventilation. So although I usually have a lawn bag or two drying in my garage, I don’t worry too much about introducing damp so mainly I just take it from a leaf pile outside.
In the nest boxes I do shredded packing paper and pine shavings. I get the pine shavings from Tractor Supply.
Now and then I empty a nest box to clean it (eg when I had a hen that laid eggs without shells) and then the coop floor benefits from some pine shavings and shredded paper.
For baby chicks I use coarse pine shavings from Tractor Supply.