Hello! I am back and upgraded our coop!

[The loud girls keeper]

Hi…. I’m no expert but I have two thoughts to your coop
and run……On the coop,I think you’d love it if you made an
access panel on the back of your nesting boxes, that way you
can get the eggs without going inside…
I have a similar run and I’ve had plexiglass pieces cut for each section…..installed just in the winter, keeps snow out and when
the sun is out, they get a little heat

 

[TexasNette]

Dowels are fine to use, my mother in law has had chickens for 17 years with no issues lol, and they’re the perfect height off the ground for them to jump onto.

Not to be rude, but most forums like these you can have the most perfect coop but someone will still try to say something is wrong.

I don’t mind feedback but I mean, dowels are never an issue, wild chickens nest on tree branches. Keeping them out of nests? Why would I keep them out the nests? My chickens have always slept in their nests, they haven’t been able to roost until now since the tiny coop I had before.

Ventilation? I have 2 large windows. Also we need a heat lamp here, it gets down to about 5F at night, can’t think everything is a fire risk. If it’s done right you won’t have any issues. My husband has had an emu for 10 years and has had two heat lamps in his shed with no issues.

We get snow but we also take care of our chickens, I wouldn’t mind getting up to shovel snow if it got into their run.

I think this new coop we’ve made is a castle compare to the store bought coop and I think our chickens are going to love it.

My chickens sleep in the nests too-I always clean it out in the morning before they lay just because of the poop accumulation-we had chickens for 20 years and they slept in the nests.

 

[Darzee]

Hello!
I previously posted on the New Member Introductions, I was told the coop I had for our 4 chicken was too small, especially when winter creeps in and they'll most likely spend time inside! I had a tractor supply chicken coop, one of those that says it's for 6 chickens when it's clearly for about...2.

Pervious post! https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hello-excited-to-learn.1540029/

We have a flock of 4 chickens! Maple who is our Ameraucana, Aspen our Silver Wyandotte, Magnolia our Light Brahma and Hazel our Rhode Island Red!

I think the coop we built is a little big for a flock of 4, but just in case in future we decide to get another 2 or 3 we thought we'd go big!

We have two big windows, you can see one in the photo, the other is on the left side, Run isn't that big because they have the run of the garden during the day, we only added a run just incase they need to be locked up, for example we'll be having house renovations happening soon, garden fence being changed and the residing of our house etc so we will need to lock them up when that is happening.

Inside the coop we have 6 nesting boxes, 2 areas to roost from and we have a heat lamp we just put in because Idaho is planning to have a very cold winter, I will also put extra bedding in when that weather creeps in! If you have any tips to help with the cold please let me know! ♥ I don't want my girls getting cold!

Hope I did a good upgrade! Please let me know any feedback! We had a lot of help in knowing what to do from my husbands mother, she's had a coop and 10-15 chickens for about 17 years!

Edit: Thought I would add that it does have a door. I forgot the outside photos were taken when we hadn't finished it!

 

[The Tiny Homestead]

haha! My mother in law said the same, she's had a flock of about 10 to 15 hens for years now, she blames herself that we're buying chickens!

Funny story behind it;

Me and my Husband went with his mother to choose new chicks for herself, In the hatchery there ended up being a pullet all by itself in this cage with no one so of course she was saying we need to take it because it was lonely.

This is where it started...
We bought her and named her Willow, she's a Bresse! After a few days we went back to get two more since she screamed the place down, after having some friends she calmed down haha! This is where maple and aspen came in.

Long story short though; Willow turned out to be a rooster and went to live with my mother in law anyway! haha!

After a few we decided to get 2 more, and then that's Magnolia and Hazel.
I love getting different breeds, it's so fascinating seeing their little personalities pop out,

Maple absolutely loves my husband, she will perch on my husbands shoulder as he walks around the garden, such a funny sight,

I started with Australorps. Last year. One was a beautiful rooster, who was killed by a predator (I think). The three hens are Sweet Sue, Brown Eyed Betty and Sadie. This year I ended up getting two Buff Orpingtons, Brave Heart, and Mazie, as well as an Auracana, Amelia Airheart.
My coop is nothing nearly as fancy as many here on BYC, but I've been tweaking it here and there since I built it. Their run is a large geodome 12+ feet across. They only get fed in the run, and I have a heated stand to keep the water from freezing.
One thing I did include initially was poop boards under the roosts. It was the best idea. When I bring food out each morning I hang out for a while in the dome with the birds. Then I go into the coop and in a matter of a few minutes, the poop boards are clean and the bedding in the coop never really gets dirty, and never had any amonia smell. The poop bucket gets emptied every few days into one of the many composters in the backyard.
The entire dome is covered with hardware cloth, as well as the coop under the plywood roof and the hardwood floorboards, and the windows i side and soffits.
I've been awakened in the middle of the night to see a whole family of racoons climing on the dome and on top of the coop. We have a long list of local predators.
You coop looks very nice and easy to keep clean.Good Build.
Don't be afraid to do minor experiments and changes to your setup. We are constantly trying new things. Some work, some don't. Some a Eureka moments.

 

[jng]

Looks great Well done

 

[MELTH87]

Hello!
I previously posted on the New Member Introductions, I was told the coop I had for our 4 chicken was too small, especially when winter creeps in and they'll most likely spend time inside! I had a tractor supply chicken coop, one of those that says it's for 6 chickens when it's clearly for about...2.

Pervious post! https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hello-excited-to-learn.1540029/

We have a flock of 4 chickens! Maple who is our Ameraucana, Aspen our Silver Wyandotte, Magnolia our Light Brahma and Hazel our Rhode Island Red!

I think the coop we built is a little big for a flock of 4, but just in case in future we decide to get another 2 or 3 we thought we'd go big!

We have two big windows, you can see one in the photo, the other is on the left side, Run isn't that big because they have the run of the garden during the day, we only added a run just incase they need to be locked up, for example we'll be having house renovations happening soon, garden fence being changed and the residing of our house etc so we will need to lock them up when that is happening.

Inside the coop we have 6 nesting boxes, 2 areas to roost from and we have a heat lamp we just put in because Idaho is planning to have a very cold winter, I will also put extra bedding in when that weather creeps in! If you have any tips to help with the cold please let me know! ♥ I don't want my girls getting cold!

Hope I did a good upgrade! Please let me know any feedback! We had a lot of help in knowing what to do from my husbands mother, she's had a coop and 10-15 chickens for about 17 years!

Edit: Thought I would add that it does have a door. I forgot the outside photos were taken when we hadn't finished it!

It’s a wonderful coop!! Yes I found with birds in general it’s easy to have add ons. My spouse dislikes the honey to do tasks.

 

[Cooncerned]

Are those dowels the roosts? Have the birds been using them reliably? Likely too narrow and too low (though if the birds are staying out of the nests, that's the important thing).

Where's the ventilation? Even in cold climates it's recommended to have 1 sq ft per bird up high open 24/7 to allow moisture and ammonia to escape.

Heat lamps are a fire risk. How cold does it get on average?

Might be a good idea to think of climate protecting the run, assuming you get a decent amount of snow, as that way you'll have a snow free area the birds can use even on the worst days when they might not be able to get out otherwise.

I totally agree with your informative feedback, which did not seem at all unkind to me. I had the same questions about the roosts being so low and the heat lamp danger before I read your feedback. It was very nice of you to take the time to try to help.

 

[Cooncerned]

I started with Australorps. Last year. One was a beautiful rooster, who was killed by a predator (I think). The three hens are Sweet Sue, Brown Eyed Betty and Sadie. This year I ended up getting two Buff Orpingtons, Brave Heart, and Mazie, as well as an Auracana, Amelia Airheart.
My coop is nothing nearly as fancy as many here on BYC, but I've been tweaking it here and there since I built it. Their run is a large geodome 12+ feet across. They only get fed in the run, and I have a heated stand to keep the water from freezing.
One thing I did include initially was poop boards under the roosts. It was the best idea. When I bring food out each morning I hang out for a while in the dome with the birds. Then I go into the coop and in a matter of a few minutes, the poop boards are clean and the bedding in the coop never really gets dirty, and never had any amonia smell. The poop bucket gets emptied every few days into one of the many composters in the backyard.
The entire dome is covered with hardware cloth, as well as the coop under the plywood roof and the hardwood floorboards, and the windows i side and soffits.
I've been awakened in the middle of the night to see a whole family of racoons climing on the dome and on top of the coop. We have a long list of local predators.
You coop looks very nice and easy to keep clean.Good Build.
Don't be afraid to do minor experiments and changes to your setup. We are constantly trying new things. Some work, some don't. Some a Eureka moments.

I would like to hear about your heated stand for the water. That's my task for this winter--keeping the water thawed. Thanks!

 

[Chinachik]

I totally agree with your informative feedback, which did not seem at all unkind to me. I had the same questions about the roosts being so low and the heat lamp danger before I read your feedback. It was very nice of you to take the time to try to help.

Dowels are fine to use, my mother in law has had chickens for 17 years with no issues lol, and they’re the perfect height off the ground for them to jump onto.

Not to be rude, but most forums like these you can have the most perfect coop but someone will still try to say something is wrong.

I don’t mind feedback but I mean, dowels are never an issue, wild chickens nest on tree branches. Keeping them out of nests? Why would I keep them out the nests? My chickens have always slept in their nests, they haven’t been able to roost until now since the tiny coop I had before.

Ventilation? I have 2 large windows. Also we need a heat lamp here, it gets down to about 5F at night, can’t think everything is a fire risk. If it’s done right you won’t have any issues. My husband has had an emu for 10 years and has had two heat lamps in his shed with no issues.

We get snow but we also take care of our chickens, I wouldn’t mind getting up to shovel snow if it got into their run.

I think this new coop we’ve made is a castle compare to the store bought coop and I think our chickens are going to love it.

Love your coop. When our chickens could free range they would roost in a tree but the branch was always wide enough for them to sit flat footed. The dowels work well when they are 2-3 weeks old. I had an old closet rod and wanted to add a higher roost bar. When I put it in the coop the big girls would jump up on it but didn't seem to be comfortable. After watching them for a couple of days they seemed to still prefer the 2" wide outside roost. I changed it to a 2 X 4 and they liked that better. My new peeps are getting adjusted to the higher roost bar. I think it makes them feel a little more stable. As they get bigger the 2x4 seems to let them roost a little more comfortably. This forum has given me lots of wonderful ideas. Rosemaryandthyme gave me good advice when I asked about different things. I live in the South so really cold weather is not such an issue here. Your babies will love what you have done for them and if not they will let you know. Shavings dry up the poop and if they sleep in your boxes just pick it out. Leave your windows open, but put hardware cloth over them and use flat washers to hold it in better. If something happened to get into the run at night it would help to protect them. We have every type of predator you could imagine here. Snakes, hawks, weasels, raccoons and coyotes. Heat lamps are scary in the coop because chickens fly and kick up lots of dust in a small area. If some of your bedding material got stuck on the lamp it could burn. Chances of this are probably slim but there is that chance. Chickens are wonderful and so much fun. You have made them a wonderful home.

 

[SourRoses]

I have never encountered a person on BYC who gives advice to be mean. Everyone who takes the time to read and respond is motivated by the same shared experience... that of losing birds they loved / valued because of mistakes they didn't know they were making. To try to spare others that pain is an act of compassion.

When we got started way back when, people gave us lots of great advice. Some we took and some we didn't (it always goes back to money or pride), but in the end we came around to doing things the advised way and found it was better.

Some ideas, like poop boards, were basically created on this forum as people shared their setups, copied each other and made improvements on the way. That's what open communication in a shared community does, makes things better for everyone's benefit.

Without this forum, tons of people would be following the advice of Cousin Toms "poultry expert" best friend Bill who worked at a factory farm.
I believe thousands and thousands of birds lives are made better and longer because of this forum and the people willing to be real and share their genuine assessments. I hope they never stop.