Help my sis pick a spot for her coop!

[CoupDuke]

It's impossible to give you advice without seeing the yard. It's actually pretty hard to 'dox' people as you say, unless you gave your phone permission to attach location to your pictures.
Put them in the yard, not on the pavers, you can make a raised, high draining bed to put the coop on and make a secure, fully enclosed run.

That sounds like the best option if flooding is frequent.

They'll need reliably dry housing, which should be fairly large since they won't always have access to their run, and she probably should avoid feather-footed birds and manage things carefully to prevent mold.

An Open Air style coop is, IMO the best option for a hot climate. The sort of ventilation she'll need for the temperatures will facilitate drying things out after wet periods.

Repecka Illustrates Coop Ventilation
Hot Climate Chicken Housing and Care

Update and it has to do with this:

She and her husband appreciate your and others' comments. They figure if they're going to make a raised bed anyway, what's the difference between doing that in the backyard and doing it in the atrium?

Also, another concern her husband raised was over the local laws and how close they allow a coop to be to a fence around the property. One way they wanted to get around that was to put the coop and run in the atrium. If all the run needs is soil to scratch, why not just mix sand and potting soil and throw in some yard clippings for good measure and greenery now and then? Also, poop on the way outside in the evenings: the atrium is about 8 to 10 steps from the back door and they know to hold the chickens upside down by their talons anyway.

 

[3KillerBs]

Wishing them good luck with their decision then.

they know to hold the chickens upside down by their talons anyway.

This is actually stressful for the bird. It won't physically hurt them if done carefully and gently, but it's stressful.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-carry-a-chicken.1509468/

 

[CoupDuke]

Wishing them good luck with their decision then.



This is actually stressful for the bird. It won't physically hurt them if done carefully and gently, but it's stressful.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-carry-a-chicken.1509468/

I've never heard this. That's like saying holding a cat or dog by the scruff stresses it out.

 

[aart]

I've never heard this. That's like saying holding a cat or dog by the scruff stresses it out.

Not the same.
Holding a chicken upside down pushes their organs against the lungs and air sacks, compressing them, they can actually suffocate.

 

[3KillerBs]

I've never heard this. That's like saying holding a cat or dog by the scruff stresses it out.

It's not the same birds vs mammals. Both their internal organs and nervous systems are different.

You can turn a bird upside down for a short while if you need to get control of one that's panicking wildly (then gather it up into a secured, upright position), but the football carry is much safer and causes less stress, especially if their eyes are covered.

 

[CoupDuke]

Not the same.
Holding a chicken upside down pushes their organs against the lungs and air sacks, compressing them, they can actually suffocate.

Huh. Just looked into it. I learned something today. Thanks!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Update and it has to do with this:

She and her husband appreciate your and others' comments. They figure if they're going to make a raised bed anyway, what's the difference between doing that in the backyard and doing it in the atrium?

Also, another concern her husband raised was over the local laws and how close they allow a coop to be to a fence around the property. One way they wanted to get around that was to put the coop and run in the atrium. If all the run needs is soil to scratch, why not just mix sand and potting soil and throw in some yard clippings for good measure and greenery now and then? Also, poop on the way outside in the evenings: the atrium is about 8 to 10 steps from the back door and they know to hold the chickens upside down by their talons anyway.

What's the difference is a whole lot of maintenance issues that could be negated by simply having the set up in the true outdoors and the fact that I think within a few months they'll be sick of carrying chickens, bedding, poop and food in and out, using their house as the pass through. But it's their house, not my house - I don't bring chickens inside.

In addition to the above, do their local laws allow for a chicken coop to be so close to their house? They do realize this will compromise the foundation of their house as well, to have extra material built up and in contact with the house?

Also potting soil is not recommended, there's add ins like fertilizer and perlites that the chickens are likely to ingest.

As other have noted chickens should not be held upside down - you CAN turn them upside down (like I do so when I'm doing bumblefoot care) but it can cause a host of problems. I've had a hen vomit from as little as being turned 90 degrees for a few seconds.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Slightly off topic, is there a reason your sister and her husband won't join the forums and ask questions directly?

 

[Acre4Me]

Interesting discussion .

2-3 chickens is a pretty tame number.. 3-4 bantams could be doable too. Smaller eggs though. Also, cotournix quail (the kind used for eggs snd meat), could work too.

So, lots of people use poop boards in the coop and use a kitty litter scoop to remove the night droppings every day.

I’m reminded of a 4-H meeting we attended one time. For whatever reason usual meeting place was not available, so everyone met at one advisor’s FARM. It’s bolded bc it was acres and acres, spacious place. The barn was large, old timber frame in great condition. They had pigs (I think based on the sounds) on one side. The chickens, however, were in one of those small TSC coops with enclosed run -inside the barn near a people door, and not too far from a large barn door. This coop sat on concrete. The chickens were totally fine, not fighting, looked great, and were a high production laying breed. I think there were 4 chickens in there-enough eggs for the family. I don’t know if they were let out in a regular basis though-just there for the meeting. Just thought it was interesting bc a farm kept their few personal chickens in the barn, on concrete.

If building outside, I recommend a taller coop, access and clean it while standing. Not necessarily a walk in coop, but one that is at a comfortable height for maintenance, this may be 2’ off the ground. The other nice thing about an elevated coop is that rodents or other animals may have s harder time gaining access, more airflow underneath annd around allows it to dry out quicker.

 

[CoupDuke]

Interesting discussion .

2-3 chickens is a pretty tame number.. 3-4 bantams could be doable too. Smaller eggs though. Also, cotournix quail (the kind used for eggs snd meat), could work too.

So, lots of people use poop boards in the coop and use a kitty litter scoop to remove the night droppings every day.

I’m reminded of a 4-H meeting we attended one time. For whatever reason usual meeting place was not available, so everyone met at one advisor’s FARM. It’s bolded bc it was acres and acres, spacious place. The barn was large, old timber frame in great condition. They had pigs (I think based on the sounds) on one side. The chickens, however, were in one of those small TSC coops with enclosed run -inside the barn near a people door, and not too far from a large barn door. This coop sat on concrete. The chickens were totally fine, not fighting, looked great, and were a high production laying breed. I think there were 4 chickens in there-enough eggs for the family. I don’t know if they were let out in a regular basis though-just there for the meeting. Just thought it was interesting bc a farm kept their few personal chickens in the barn, on concrete.

If building outside, I recommend a taller coop, access and clean it while standing. Not necessarily a walk in coop, but one that is at a comfortable height for maintenance, this may be 2’ off the ground. The other nice thing about an elevated coop is that rodents or other animals may have s harder time gaining access, more airflow underneath annd around allows it to dry out quicker.

So, it's not anathema to situate chickens on concrete, then?

Yeah, 2-3 chickens isn't much, but they want to start small to see how things go. The door to the backyard is less than 10 steps from one of the atrium doors, so it shouldn't be as big a deal as some here are making it out to be.

I'll relay the info to my sis about the off-the-ground coop. That sounds like a good idea.