How needed are they?

[iBoodle]

I changed some things around today; I will take pictures tomorrow and post them here for you all to see. I turned the house/hut thing upside down and put some wheat type weed in it for bedding. Hopefully tomorrow they will have used it for a nesting box.

navasima, I agree! There are so many great ideas on this site. But I am limited with my building skills. Hence the reason why my chickens don't have a proper coop yet!

 

[Tracydr]

I put a roost in the brooder with chicks when they are just a day old. By one week, most are getting on and off it. Soon, they start to sleep on it, at maybe 3-4 weeks of age.
I think roosts and next boxes are mandatory but don't need to be fancy.

 

[navasima]

Aw heck iBoodle - I'm rehabing a 6ftX3ft rabbit hutch into my big coop. This thing stands about 5 ft. tall - 2 1/2 ft legs - which puts it just an inch or so taller than me!

The best part? I'm working with my father's old jigsaw and a hammer. I look at some of the pics here and feel like I may be the worst chicken mom ever! -but then I remind myself that the girls will never see those designer coops and that as long as they have what they need...they'll be happy, healthy girls!
The coop? Well...it will have lots of cute trim....not for the cuteness, but to disguise the fact that I am chronically unable to cut a straight line!

Shoot - your coop will be great because you are putting care into it!

 

[iBoodle]

Found some pictures of what the coop looked like before....
Keep in mind, a lot has changed since these pictures were taken!


navasima, I am repurposing mine from a rabbit hutch, too!

In the corner is the "hut" that I turned upside down and made into a nesting box.