We have 17 chickens, mostly Barred Rock and Buff Orpington. They came from people who no longer wanted them, Tractor Supply, and the local poultry auction. The small coop is from Tractor Supply and we got it and some of the chickens from a couple who no longer wanted to keep chickens. We built the pen and the coop on stilts. You can see the little door to the pen, we let the chickens out during the day. They keep the cricket population down as well as other insects.
We have a total of 9 nesting boxes and enough roosting space for everyone. 6 in the big coop and 3 in the little coop. The chickens hang out in little gangs... the 4 chicks stay together and they are very friendly, the little black hen and her chick stay together, the rooster and 3 hens are a team, and the rest of the hens roam around in a pack.
We built a gravity feeder using a 5 gallon bucket, we have 2 waterers than we got from the same people we got the small coop from (1 5gal and 1 3gal). We have a small trough to put feed in so we can sit out there with the chickens when they eat. Several of them will hop up in our laps when they are done eating. We also built a small wood gravity feeder that holds grit. Inside the big coop the floor under the roosts is sand which makes for easy scooping. The small coop has a metal tray that is removable. Here are a few pictures for your viewing pleasure. I'm no carpenter, and that shows in the workmanship.
We have a total of 9 nesting boxes and enough roosting space for everyone. 6 in the big coop and 3 in the little coop. The chickens hang out in little gangs... the 4 chicks stay together and they are very friendly, the little black hen and her chick stay together, the rooster and 3 hens are a team, and the rest of the hens roam around in a pack.
We built a gravity feeder using a 5 gallon bucket, we have 2 waterers than we got from the same people we got the small coop from (1 5gal and 1 3gal). We have a small trough to put feed in so we can sit out there with the chickens when they eat. Several of them will hop up in our laps when they are done eating. We also built a small wood gravity feeder that holds grit. Inside the big coop the floor under the roosts is sand which makes for easy scooping. The small coop has a metal tray that is removable. Here are a few pictures for your viewing pleasure. I'm no carpenter, and that shows in the workmanship.
