Getting chickens

[MARY BAKES]

So excited I'm finally getting a few chickens after many years of wanting to. Can anyone recommend a cheap and quick alternative to a true coop? My husband and I will be building one but I would like to purchase some hens before we get a chance to do this. Thanks in advance.

 

[talkinboutchickens]

Hello and welcome to BYC, Mary, its great to have ya here! I am not sure i can help you there, but I know someone else will probably come along and will be able to answer your question

 

[pennyJo1960]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens. This is a great place to hang out.
Easiest is buy a shed at your home store.
Use hardware cloth not chicken wire.

 

[N F C]

Hi Mary, instead of going with a prebuilt coop (a big waste of money), you could try a shed like @pennyJo1960 suggested. Or some people have made sheds out of old playhouses, swing sets, pallets, etc. A little creativity can go a long way!

 

[GoosesGeeses]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[CCsGarden]

Welcome to BYC!
From experience, I would not buy a coop that is made. I had a hard time introducing the chickens to the newly built coop since they had gotten use to the pre-built one even though it didn't have enough space.

Just my experience/suggestion

 

[fldiver97]

Nice to have you here!

 

[FrostRanger]

Welcome!

100% agree with avoiding prefabs, horrible waste of money, you'll be far better off with modifying a shed and as hard as it is to wait, don't get birds until the coop is in order. I made the mistake of not expanding my existing coop before getting more chicks and the day before I was going to get to it and hopefully put the outside full time, I fell extremely ill with what turned out to be bronchitis, the start of pneumonia and the worst stomach bug of my life so they had to stay inside until I got over all that

 

[eggsellent chickens]

Hi and welcome to BYC.
I have been looking for something similar to a coop too. (Cheep)
I suggest using a shed.

 

[fowltemptress]

You can put up some hoop coops relatively quickly and cheaply. They're what I keep almost all my birds in, and they're maybe a weekend's worth of work and much cheaper than any sheds I've seen available.