How to house a chicken too big to go through coop door?

[Tesumph]

So sorry to hear about your bird. I can’t imagine how much it would suck being given that responsibility and having conflicting morals. If he is not suffering at the moment, then it is not cruel in the slightest to let him live out his life. Only you, the owner, can decide when quality of life is gone, not some strangers on a forum.

Sounds like you’ve done your research and are taking care of him well. I agree that building a little wooden box, about the size of a large dog crate, and sticking a 2x4 in it just a little of the ground would be best. I wouldn’t be surprised if other birds roosted with him without your prompting.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

It's very sad, but I'm very glad that you told me what he was. Since then, I have learned so much on how to own and treat broiler birds; primarily how to give them the longest and best life possible. I will spoil him up until the end (and by that I mean making him work and exercise for his food). Having him is definitely a mind-opener to how greedy people can be. It is so very selfish to create an organism that can't even live more than a year before that cannot walk or have a heart attack. I'm so sad because he has easily become my absolute favorite, and I know that his life is already more than half way over.

so sad

 

[kinkachy000]

You are doing what is best for your situation. I don't even know this boy and I feel sad. He sounds like such a precious creature. He deserves to live and die with dignity. When the time comes, I would also opt for a vet to put him to sleep. It's amazing how fast you can get attached to these creatures. They have personalities for sure. Wishing you and him tbe very best.

Thank you for these kind words. I did not mean to cause such a ruckus, I'm just trying my best to give him a great life. I was just wondering coop ideas and so many jumped on me, which kind of sucks. So, I appreciate your words, honestly.

He is honestly the sweetest chicken I've ever owned and I love him dearly. This meaning that I would not allow him suffer. I will not kill him myself, or send him to be butchered, but I WILL get him humanely euthanized when and if the time comes. I wish people would understand that instead of saying some of the things they did.

 

[kinkachy000]

I know you don't want to pick him up but will he step up on your arm if you put it under? Iv'e got a fat bird too and carry her like a chunky falcon. It seems like if the feet are on something they do ok.

I'm not sure, I will try this out. Thank you.

 

[kinkachy000]

So sorry to hear about your bird. I can’t imagine how much it would suck being given that responsibility and having conflicting morals. If he is not suffering at the moment, then it is not cruel in the slightest to let him live out his life. Only you, the owner, can decide when quality of life is gone, not some strangers on a forum.

Sounds like you’ve done your research and are taking care of him well. I agree that building a little wooden box, about the size of a large dog crate, and sticking a 2x4 in it just a little of the ground would be best. I wouldn’t be surprised if other birds roosted with him without your prompting.

Thank you for these kind words, as well. He is my chicken, and like you said, only I know how his life truly is. Some of these people were so quick to judge. And it just sucks when I was simply asking for help to better my animal's life and then a bunch of people are calling me cruel, inhumane, and that I should never own pets or have kids, and that I should just kill him. It was very insensitive of them; they wouldn't like it if I said they should just kill their beloved animals. sorry for the rant, I just was not expecting to be pretty much attacked after asking for some help.

He is living an amazing life at the moment. I'm keeping his weight down by forcing him to work for his food and strict feeding him. I've put in a bunch of research on how to let him live a longer, happy, and healthy life. At the moment, he isn't any different than all my other chickens, aside from the coop issue. He is so happy and full of life right now, that it would seem cruel to me to end his life so short. I knew his death is short-coming, so I already have a vet that will humanely euthanize him when the time comes.

I will definitely be taking the dog crate approach and giving him a warmer, better place to lay.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Maybe I missed something in here but couldn't you just leave the person door on your coop open and have him us it?
Or is this a coop and run set up?
I also pick up dogloo type doghouses cheap all the time. One of those would work.

 

[Tesumph]

Maybe I missed something in here but couldn't you just leave the person door on your coop open and have him us it?
Or is this a coop and run set up?

I believe it’s seperate builds with the human door being outside the wiring of the run.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Thank you for these kind words.

At the moment he is still living a really great life. He can walk and even run, he can eat and drink by himself - he is living a pretty normal life. If there comes to a point where he cannot walk anymore, then yes, I will put him down. I'm not going to be cruel to him just for my own selfishness. I want only the best for him, and that's what I'm trying to do. Thats what this thread was for....how to give him a better life, with his own personal coop. Not to be continously told just to kill him and eat his corpse. I'm not going to kill him and eat him, to me that's not something I could not to something I love. If and when the time comes, I already have a vet that can humanely euthanize him.

I'm a farmer and raise livestock for meat, but I understand. When I keep some Cornish X past butcher day, they really do get friendly and grow on you.
I don't think there is any reason he can't live a long life. Just make sure he gets plenty of exercise and keep him on a low protein feed (approx. 15%) and definitely not layer feed.
Is he able to free range? If not, that could diminish his quality of life and longevity.

... it is so sad that we would ever try to breed a bird that cannot even sustain life! WHY. people and their SELFISH GREEDY NATURE

I wouldn't categorize it as greed.
It is finding a way to feed an ever increasingly urban population. In 1850, 85% of the US population was agrarian and only 15% urban. By 1990, it was 75% urban vs. 25% rural. Globally, 54% of the population is urban. By 2050, it will be nearly 70%. I don't like it either but somebody has to feed all those people that can't grow their own food.
IMHO, the real problem is population growth.
We are talking in excess of 5.5 billion people that need someone to feed them. It will be another 200,000 by the end of the day. Commercial agriculture has stepped up to do so.
Genetic selection of animals that could convert feed to meat more efficiently and nutrition research evolved throughout the 20th century to where it is today. As ugly as commercial broiler production is, it brings much needed, quality animal protein to people who otherwise couldn't afford it without that efficiency.

 

[The Moonshiner]

I believe it’s seperate builds with the human door being outside the wiring of the run.

Now I'm thinking your correct.
I'm used to hillbilly chicken raising more so the suburban chickens so those set ups don't come to mind as quick for me.
So now I'm back to maybe a dogloo doghouse. No building required and I pick them up for cheaper then you could build anything the same size for.
I use them for various situations mostly for broodies in my free range flock and broody ducks.
Quick and easy. Easy entrance and keeps elements at bay. Ventilation may be an issue though for that guy. He would definitely not want to overheat.

 

[kinkachy000]

Maybe I missed something in here but couldn't you just leave the person door on your coop open and have him us it?
Or is this a coop and run set up?
I also pick up dogloo type doghouses cheap all the time. One of those would work.

Now I'm thinking your correct.
I'm used to hillbilly chicken raising more so the suburban chickens so those set ups don't come to mind as quick for me.
So now I'm back to maybe a dogloo doghouse. No building required and I pick them up for cheaper then you could build anything the same size for.
I use them for various situations mostly for broodies in my free range flock and broody ducks.
Quick and easy. Easy entrance and keeps elements at bay. Ventilation may be an issue though for that guy. He would definitely not want to overheat.

Yes, this is correct. The human sized door is on the side of the coop, outside of the run. So I would have to pick him up and carry him around the coop and run, to get him in. I'm definitely going to get a dog house for him, and I will put some ventalation holes in the sides for him.