I am new, and so confused...

[dennisma1]

I vote for the barred rocks too. They are early and prolific layers. They are pretty hardy, i have one that is 10 years old. She outlived her flock so now shes a pet. She is super friendly , likes to hang out with me on the porch, and sit on my lap and get petted like a cat. She was heart broken when her last buddy died, but kind to the new flock members. You'll find that chickens have their own personalities if you keep them long enough.
A well built coop that looks nice will make you happy, the chickens wont care. Mine free range all over three acres, but they still lay there eggs in the coop. I've had chickens before that didn't free range, and they were a bunch of dullards, they tended to die sooner too. So while there is risk in free range, at least they are happy.
Dont leave food out for them at coop over night or you will attract rats.
My coop in florida has a lot of air flow, and a couple layers of chicken wire over the grating on the windows. I live in rural florida and we have bears and bobcats, coyotes, raccoons and opossums, armadillos, all sorts of things that want to eat the chickens or at least the chicken food. I lock them in as soon as its dark.
I had one buff rock die if heat stroke , so now i can keep an eye on them if it gets too hot. They usually have the sense to hang in the shade, but if they are panting a lot I'll dunk them in a bucket of water of stick them in a dog cage in the house in the ac.
Some linoleum on the floor and not bare wood will make cleaning coop easier, and a tray of something under their roost to catch the poop is a good idea too.
I've found that chickens will eat just about anything, and are pretty hardy, even the chicks. Make sure they can get away from the heat lamp and have food and water and you should be fine.

 

[olivigus]

Hi and welcome! I, too, had wanted chickens for years, finally got them in my 50s, and can honestly say they have been even more fun than I imagined. I really love having them around. There's lots of great advice in this thread and on this site--it was a big source of both inspiration and assistance for me. One thing I would add to the conversation is to consider putting in an automatic coop door. They are a bit pricey (around $200) but I have never regretted that investment. Even though I always go to check on them anyway before I go in for the night, it is a huge relief knowing that they are already secure when I get home after dark in the winter. Ours operates off a little solar panel mounted to the coop, and was very easy to install. They're easy to program too. Just be sure to adjust it every few weeks as daylight changes going from summer into fall and winter into spring. It's also nice that I can occasionally sleep in a bit on the weekend and know they will still have access to the yard once the sun's up. I hope it's a fun journey for you and your husband!

 

[HopeSprings]

I'm in the same boat - new to chickens, but have mine on order! Been working on plans and posting pic of my drawings here for critique.
Btw, I live in NC, too, but the gorgeous summer part of NC!

 

[Ketty Ash]

hi everyone I am new to raising chickens, but have been wanting to do this my entire life. My husband and I have purchased a home in a very rural area, and FINALLY I can have what I want, without restrictions. I am in my 40’s, and actually grew up gardening, but never had any animals, other than furbabies. My husband is a USMC with ptsd....these chickens are literally going to be his therapy.

***by the way, I do not have chicks yet....I won’t get them until the coop has been built***

I have been researching chickens, on the internet and I have purchased more books than I care to count, and there is SO MUCH information I feel like I’m more lost now than when I started. We have actually modified a prefab chicken coop into a chicken tractor, but when it comes to a permanent coop, I don’t know where to begin.

I have been watching how storms come and go, wind direction, trying to figure out where to, and where not to put windows, vents, nesting boxes, roosting bars, etc.

The one thing I did get from everyone’s experiences is that I absolutely want a run tall enough for me to walk into, which won’t be that difficult, as I am only 5 ft tall. I am thinking a raised coop at least 4x8 and a run 8x12....I work shifts so I only work 3 days per week but I leave when it’s dark, and get home when it’s dark. The days I’m off, the girls can free range with supervision, of course.

. I am only looking to have 4-6 hens, no roosters (I was tormented by my grandmas rooster when I was little and I prefer not to have to wring a neck, so to speak)

Oh, and I also live in NC, where the summers are HORRIBLY humid and the rainfall here is abnormally high for the past year (we have had more than 14 inches in excess).....

My DH isn’t very “building savvy” but I can build just about anything with plans. Have been to the habitat store every single week now for 6 months trying to find things to repurpose, but have only found an antique panel window and 20 untreated 2x4’s.

Any advice would be appreciated dearly....

Don't overthink it. I was new to chickens four years ago. Chickens have flourished for years without modern conveniences. We live in Kentucky and have had cold winters and hot, humid summers. It has gotten below 0° and as high as 97°. We've broken our precipitation records in the past year. My husband built 8'x10' sheds for out two coops. We don't have electricity in them, so he insulated the walls. He bought treated lumber because he didn't want to have to rebuild them every few years. Ours will last a very long time. He put two small basement like windows on either side of them to help create a cross breeze. The doors face south. He built a covered porch-like area with corrugated tin to sit under during heavy rain, and to provide shade. Then, he used farm fencing to create a run. We free range them every afternoon. They're pretty destructive to vegetation and we have 26 hens and 1 rooster so I don't let them free range all day. Our rooster is not mean, but we had two means ones before that we had to re home. I fussed and worried about our chickens the first winter we had them, and all for nothing. They survived just fine. Enjoy your chickens! They're so interesting and fun to raise.

 

[Ketty Ash]

Hi and welcome! I, too, had wanted chickens for years, finally got them in my 50s, and can honestly say they have been even more fun than I imagined. I really love having them around. There's lots of great advice in this thread and on this site--it was a big source of both inspiration and assistance for me. One thing I would add to the conversation is to consider putting in an automatic coop door. They are a bit pricey (around $200) but I have never regretted that investment. Even though I always go to check on them anyway before I go in for the night, it is a huge relief knowing that they are already secure when I get home after dark in the winter. Ours operates off a little solar panel mounted to the coop, and was very easy to install. They're easy to program too. Just be sure to adjust it every few weeks as daylight changes going from summer into fall and winter into spring. It's also nice that I can occasionally sleep in a bit on the weekend and know they will still have access to the yard once the sun's up. I hope it's a fun journey for you and your husband!

I've never heard of the trap doors. Very cool idea! We don't have them, but if we're out late we just lock them up when we get home. No mishaps in four years.