Fort McFeathers gets a major upgrade!!

[sals_chicks]

Hi All,

Thought I would start a new thread to document our new coop build. My original coop build can be seen here: Sal's New England Chick Condo

The original coop (and run), when close to almost finished back in 2022:

While the original coop is still in perfect condition, well functioning, and well built, the past 3 years of keeping chickens has taught us a LOT. Mostly about chicken math, as our flock grew from 7 to 15, plus some pigeons...lol. The new coop will be a walk-in, and will be about 2x the size of this little green cutie. I can only grow my flock so big, as we live on a city lot - so this upgrade will be it for the forseeable future.

Truly a lesson in, we didn't know what we didn't know, and now we are going to make it what we actually want for our flock!

That being said, this is a beautiful coop and a LOT of TLC went into building it, so the goal is to get this coop detached in one piece so that we can pass it along to another new chicken keeper, and it can go on to give another flock a safe/warm place to survive the cold (and long) New England winters. Cross your fingers that we can get it detached and moved without having to dismantle it.

Enjoy a few pictures of the existing aviary space and my birds, and stay tuned to see our build, if that interests you!

Photo dump!!

a view of the whole aviary: coop, covered run, netted yard!

Entrance to the bird yard:

Inside the covered run:

This year I built a big dividing planter in the yard, slowly going to add chicken friendly plants to it... The chickens are "helping."

Some of my ladies:

2025 New Additions: 4 pigeons, and 4 new baby hens

And finally - the very humble beginnings of the new coop... 9'x10'

 

[thecatumbrella]

That is gorgeous! I'm excited to see progress photos.

What size is your original coop? We're looking to build something on the smaller side... Any chance your New England area is close to my New England area??

 

[sals_chicks]

That is gorgeous! I'm excited to see progress photos.

What size is your original coop? We're looking to build something on the smaller side... Any chance your New England area is close to my New England area??

the original coop is 4'x7' (8' if you count the nesting boxes as part of the footprint). It comfortably houses 10 birds.

We are in NH also!! I will definitely keep folks posted on whether or not we are able to move it without dismantling it, if there is interest. At this point we are hesitant to promise it to anyone based on that fact, lol.

 

[sals_chicks]

a little update! I am thrilled to say that we were able to move the original coop intact (well, we did remove all the doors and windows to get the weight down, but all of those can be reattached very easily!)

It is HEAVY. It took 6 strong adults to move it, but it is ready for its final clean out - planning to do that over the next couple weeks, and then will be available, if anyone is interested in it. Anyone who wants it will likely need to rent a trailer to transport it. We are in no rush, if someone wants to take their time working out logistics.

Some details:
Originally built in 2022. Dimensions 4'x 7' (4'x8' with nesting boxes included in footprint). 3 nesting boxes, 2 glass windows, 2 flip up/predator proof additional windows for ventilation and summer airflow. Comfortably houses 10 (maybe 12) chickens, so long as they have ample space in their run/yard, and good coop cleaning is part of your plan. Ridge vent, gable vent, soffit vents all in place, and it does have an attached electrical box on the exterior and interior that can be hooked up if you want electricity. We have it setup with 2 roost bars, but they are removable so you could customize if you wanted.

I really want to make sure this goes to someone who really wants to use and appreciate it. Hubs and I put a lot of love and attention into building it, so I would really love to see it go to a good home.

Message me if you are interested!

 

[sals_chicks]

That is gorgeous! I'm excited to see progress photos.

What size is your original coop? We're looking to build something on the smaller side... Any chance your New England area is close to my New England area??

Just wanted to tag you @thecatumbrella - see my above post. If you are really interested, let me know!

 

[thecatumbrella]

Just wanted to tag you @thecatumbrella - see my above post. If you are really interested, let me know!

Messaged you!

 

[sals_chicks]

A little weekend progress post! After moving the old coop out of the way, made a bit of progress on the new coop. Footings leveled and installed, and floor is in place.

The gaping hole on that side of the run has been closed up temporarily and reinforced with some extra hardware cloth and plywood for now. We built a little roosting area inside the fully predator-safe run, and I also picked up a cheap little free-standing nesting box that they have started to use. So far the chickens are confused to the MAX, but going with the flow as best they can.

Their little temporary setup:

And, a paint color for the new coop has been selected!