How to predator-proof this coop. Wwyd.

[BluebirdHomestead]

Something to consider first; What happened to the birds who used to live there? Have they been gone for years? Then you are good. If recently occupied, were they sick? Marek's disease virus lives for at least a year or two out there! After three weeks, Mycoplasma should be gone. Make sure your building is safe before fixing it up. Spray the inside with permethrin for mites at least before it's reoccupied.
Roofing that run should happen, and I'd hire it done too.
Nobody can work with a toddler under foot!!! Either pay a sitter, or hire most of the work done, IMO.
All the best, Mary

These are such good points!!! I don’t believe there has been chickens in there for at least a couple years. There was a serious wasp nest in there when we bought the place. I had to spray the wasps because I’m allergic so I assume I need to give the coop a very very thorough cleaning.
I didn’t know the spray permethrin! Thank you for that. Does it come in a spray especially for this purpose? Thanks again.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

PS. You don't need to remove the chicken wire. Just put the hardware cloth over it. The chicken wire doesn't hurt anything. It just doesn't help much. Also, clean out the brush inside, maybe buy an inexpensive tarp, and pop the two year old with plenty of toys and cookies INSIDE while mom works on the outside. In addition, after looking at the pictures closely, it looks like a really well-built Coop and run. It appears the frame is set on concrete. How deep into the ground does the concrete go? And check. With the quality work done on this Coop the original owner MAY have already installed an apron around it. Dig down a couple inches around the outside and see if you find wire.

Thank you for pointing that out! I didn’t think to check how deep that cement was buried. I just went out there and got at least a couple inches down and it’s still there so going to keep digging tomorrow.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

A few questions first, that you don't even need to answer on here. Do you work outside the home. You know, a regular job? Do you have a vehicle that can transport materials, say 4 by 8 sheets of plywood? Do 2 year olds still take 2-hour naps?
At $25 per hour for 15 hours plus material, you're well over $500 to refinish this Coop. And with the suggestions (good, all of them) on here, I bet that 15 hours is going to look much more like 20 hours. If you got it, spend it. My coop and run, from scratch, cost almost $1,500 and I did 100% of the work myself.
BUT.
The Pride and feeling of self accomplishment is probably worth more over your life than the amount you would spend to have someone else do this. The actual skills are pretty basic. Any questions, I'll bet someone on this site will be glad to walk you through.
Let's say the handyman takes 20 hours. You're only half as fast as him so 40 hours. With 2-hour naps for the toddler, that's barely under three weeks to finish your project. You said you wanted it done by Spring. Even with Colorado's crappy weather, I think you're golden. And (I am assuming you are a woman) don't forget to play the helpless female card. " oh this big roll of wire is just too heavy for me to lift. Could you help me cut it. I just happen to have the dimensions right here on this piece of paper (batting eyelashes). " OK, I know I'm going to catch heck for that last sentence from folks here on byc. But facts are facts, and what works, works. Good luck!

Tragically, the toddler does not nap AT ALL. I wish!!!

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

If you don't already have birds (so have time to stretch out the build) and are willing to learn some carpentry...I would strongly suggest you DIY.
First, good planning so you don't have to rebuild anything.
The coop roof does not look to shed water well.
Pics of inside would be good here.

I’ll get some more pics tomorrow!!!

 

[Folly's place]

Permethrin comes as a dusting powder, or better, as a spray concentrate, at TSC and other farm stores. It's cheap, effective, and easy to use, and approved for use with poultry with no egg withdrawal.
Lots of good advice here, it's nice to have a coop to work with.
Mary

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Permethrin comes as a dusting powder, or better, as a spray concentrate, at TSC and other farm stores. It's cheap, effective, and easy to use, and approved for use with poultry with no egg withdrawal.
Lots of good advice here, it's nice to have a coop to work with.
Mary

Awesome thank you. And yes, having the framework already there is making this so much easier for me.

 

[trumpeting_angel]

I’m jealous that you have a coop to start with!

Look at the BYC articles about building coops - there are LOTS of good ideas.

Get fewer chickens than the square footage will allow. (Minimum standard it 4 square feet/chicken in the coop, 10/chicken in the run). You will be
So happy you did! I made my coop a little bigger than the minimum (about 18 sq. ft. for 4 chickens) and as soon as we put them in there I knew it was too small. When we added an exterior nest box, we added a 4 sq. ft. addition. Remember, they may not want to come outside in the winter, and cabin fever could get rough inside a coop. And it looks really dark in there!

The ventilation should be well over their heads when they are roosting. You can also read up on ventilation in the articles and forum threads (the search function was my friend throughout this process). You need more than you think. Think 1 sq. ft. per bird.

Isn’t this exciting? Wait till you have to keep the 2-year-old away from the brooder!

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

I’m jealous that you have a coop to start with!

Look at the BYC articles about building coops - there are LOTS of good ideas.

Get fewer chickens than the square footage will allow. (Minimum standard it 4 square feet/chicken in the coop, 10/chicken in the run). You will be
So happy you did! I made my coop a little bigger than the minimum (about 18 sq. ft. for 4 chickens) and as soon as we put them in there I knew it was too small. When we added an exterior nest box, we added a 4 sq. ft. addition. Remember, they may not want to come outside in the winter, and cabin fever could get rough inside a coop. And it looks really dark in there!

The ventilation should be well over their heads when they are roosting. You can also read up on ventilation in the articles and forum threads (the search function was my friend throughout this process). You need more than you think. Think 1 sq. ft. per bird.

Isn’t this exciting? Wait till you have to keep the 2-year-old away from the brooder!

Eek! I’m so excited. And I ended up talking to someone local and am getting the chicks this Thursday. I am SO excited. So I’ve got a couple months to get this all done now! Maybe longer if it’s a cold winter and I end up keeping them in a smaller coop in our heated workshop. I’ll have to see what happens.
I’m definitely realizing that I need to figure out how to ventilate better. That, and the hardware cloth are my priorities. If I don’t get to a roof on the run right away I’m thinking a tarp could maybe work for the very short term.

 

[trumpeting_angel]

A tarp probably could! Watch out for snow load.

If you keep them warm all winter, they won’t develop the feathers and down they’ll need to be chickens in Colorado. Read up here on when chicks can be outdoors, and cool them gradually (an open window in the brooder room for increasing hours, for example). Hens have raised chicks from time immemorial outdoors.

You might want to go more slowly, though. Building in the snow is difficult, and having everything built before you have chicks is better in the long run. I wish I did.

 

[wyoDreamer]

Are you planning to lock the chickens in their coop at night? If so, then personally I wouldn't spend that much money to wrap the run in hardware cloth. I don't have hardware cloth on my run, we made our run out of 6 foot tall fencing with 2"x4" openings. It is strong enough to keep out most predators - my predators are neighbor dogs, foxes, coyotes, and raccoons.
If you leave the chicken wire up and put the fencing material over it, the chicken wire will provide the small opening limitation for raccoons reaching in to grab chickens and the fence will provide enough strength to keep out most other predators.