Help Placing Roosting Poles

[ATchickens]

We just recently bought a house with a coop already there. I've read a lot of things about protecting the chickens from a draft but the chickens roosting poles look to be in a too open of an area? We're not sure exactly how to fix this problem. Should we completely close the roosting area off with plywood, or somehow do a less permanent fix like tarps or something? I'm just not sure how much is enough. We live in Virginia, so temperatures don't get too cold (we do have the occasional one time in winter when it gets to like 8 degrees though). It does get pretty warm in the summer time though. Any advice is helpful! Thanks in advance!

 

[SunHwaKwon]

That is more of a run than a coop!

You are lucky, though - it looks like they used decent wire on it, though I would make sure that at least around the bottom it is covered by smaller wire to keep raccoons from reaching in. We are in the near center of dozens of acres and a raccoon still managed to wander its way to its coop (I saw it on the game cameras before it became a problem).

I personally would build some sort of coop, either an elevated one inside of that area or put it on the outside of that run area.

 

[snow5164]

Wow that's a great bonus! You got everything you need right there. The feeders and water bottles are expensive. I wouldn't build a coop obviously it worked for them , they have a heat lamp by the roosts so you know it must have been cold . If you close it in you might regret it in the hot summer months...
I'd try it as is you can always change it as you go.
Good luck with your new adventure