Good location?

[Bsdyn01]

Our back yard is south of our house. To the SE we have a large tree which is where our shed is and between it and the house/garage is the kids' huge swingset... is that a good place to put the coop? What about running a extension cord. About 60-80 feet to coop in winter? I'm starting to think we should have the coop closer to our house and garden spot? But we're talking maybe 10 feet from garage door... is that too close? I could post pictures if really need be.?

 

[Nicole01]

They need shading to protect them from the sun. It doesn't take much for them to need shade. Under the tree sounds good. Good luck with the coop!

We built our coop inside our garage, the run along side the house. It worked so well, our neighbors did the same thing. They are predator safe and safe from people messing with them too. We had to put in our own shading due to the heat of the sun, coop is on the west side. It cost us quite a bit more then what we expected.

 

[Bsdyn01]

I was reading that under trees could pose a problem due to squirrels and wild birds... is there really cause for concern? :/

 

[chfite]

I would value the shade more than I would fret about the other birds and squirrels. Of course, the heat is more of a concern here in the South. I haven't noticed other birds in the run. I am afraid the chickens would eat the squirrels, if they found one in the run. I keep the food inside the coop.

The only need that I have found for electricity is to power a bird bath heater that I keep in the water supply bucket to prevent freezing in winter.

Chris