Is an indoor coop possible?

[TreeHugger]

When I was growing up my father had a "no animals in the house rule". I can't tell you how many times my dad would come home & I would have a baby goat/lamb/chicken/pig on the couch. He would just roll his eyes & keep on going. Benefit of being daddy's only child. I personal would not let the chickens stay in the house. Right now I have 8 little chicks in here & even though I clean up after them daily they still have an odor to them. I do have 2 parrots in the house & even though they are messy it's a totally different aroma

 

[artsyrobin]

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that is what i was thinking of doing with my silkies, a large bird cage, with some time out every day?

 

[New2Peeps]

I cannot imagine that 3 small seramas could be any messier or harder to care for than parrots, cockatiels or parakeets. I had a big blue front amazon and several breeder pairs of cockatiels plus batches of hand fed babies and they were quite noisy and a chore to keep up with all the cleaning, feeding etc. 3 little seramas sounds like a much simpler proposition.

 

[Becky_H]

That's almost exactly it, yeah. Though I will say that 'outside some' for my guys amounts to 'outside for the vast majority of the day'. We're just not in a location where I feel safe with them out there at night and with no one around. Too many dogs wandering, no leash laws.

 

[SeramaMama]

Okay, so on the one hand, I'm convinced that yes, chickens are messy. From these posts I also -- no offense here -- believe that some people probably have more sensitive noses and different standards of what cleaning frequently means. My sense is that it is possible to set up a coop inside that, depending on the materials used to build it and how it's built, can stay on the fresh side, but only if it's cleaned frequently (meaning, once a day) and the space is aired out. Would the chickens be miserable if they're inside most of the time? I would guess that if they're ignored and alone most of the time, then definitely. But if their environment is nicely set up, they get outside a little daily, and they get human attention daily, I would think two small Seramas could potentially be just fine.

However, wanting to find the best solution in the short-term while the backyard chicken coop laws are slowly coming into being...I had another idea, maybe naive, but still, I'd like to run it by more experienced people. In areas of Denver and Boulder (and other parts of the country of course), there are the community gardens where each person gets a little plot of land to grow veggies and flowers on. Has anyone ever heard of a community farm where people can not only raise crops, but also raise animals such as chickens in a shared barn or large coop? I'm thinking that a lot of people who don't want to break the law and don't have the space, but are really interested in learning agricultural and livestock skills would be interested in something like this. Does anyone know if it exists? I would love to figure out a way to make something like this work in the Boulder/Denver area. It would be great for communities, for the education of adults and children, and a wonderful example of sustainable living.

Again -- thanks for the thoughtful responses. I like everyone's honesty and directness -- hearing the good, bad and ugly all at once is refreshing!

 

[SeramaLife]

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I don't know about the HOA, we don't havew one. Here is a good topic: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=188882

 

[BluegrassSeramas]

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Im sure they would be with a great SeramaMama like you! They really are not very big, even the C class is around the size of an African Grey...

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I think that that is the greatest idea ever!! If I end up getting this degree in Sustainable Agriculture (as opposed to zoology or biology or equine management or equine assisted learning..lol)
Im going to open one up!!
Maybe you can meet someone locally with a farm that will let you keep a pen there if you throw in on bags of feed..try Craigslist farm and garden or a local green Yahoo group or something? I think there is a CO group here in the WHERE AM I? WHERE ARE YOU? section....

 

[BluegrassSeramas]

And people are worried about you keeping a chicken in the house!

lol

This is sooo cute!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=189528

 

[Raising Reds]

I would not get chickens if keeping them in the basement is the only alternative you have. What if you try it and hate it? If you can't possibly keep them outside then you will have no choice but to get rid of them.

 

[SeramaMama]

I love those pictures, Ondra! Those chicks look deliriously happy with that stump!

LOL, Bluegrass! I want a little potbellied piglet on my couch, too! Today we visited a nearby farm and they had some bigger piglets. They were still small enough to be cute, with dirty wet noses and long eyelashes. Thanks also for liking the farm-share idea. I really think something like that could catch on...it seems like so many people are more into raising their own food and working on the land for personal health and environmental reasons. What kind of program are you in exactly? It sounds really interesting!

I think there are enough farms around here that I could probably find some kind of leasing or farm chores-for-space situation.