Just found eggs???

[Chickassan]

That's not ugly, it's functional and functional is never ugly.

View attachment 1163385 View attachment 1163368 Mine is ugly, but hey I moved here because it is unincorporated county land without a homeowners association. Being a disabled vet I don't want to be bothered by irritating people telling me I have to do something.

Anyhow they don't use their back room as they only use the back room if it gets cold or windy or they don't agree with how I set it up with a straw floor and 2 more of the larger tree trunks I cut down before hurricane Harvey looked like it might hit us. At night they choose to roost on the top of the pallet, or directly on the hardware cloth at the highest point on the front of my coop directly over the food/watering stations. There is chicken poop all over in these images as I have yet to get todays cleaning done. That little giant waterer's anti roosting cover is priceless for keeping the roosting poop out of their water.

Luckily, we only got grazed loads of 30-40mph winds(refering to Harvey) and a trivial amount of rain-( I had hoped that would have at least broken our drought. Today I have to go out and finish my Rat proofing and cover the inside of the door with hardware cloth. Then in future cut out the back walls to install nesting boxes but I have time as I have a slow growing game breed.

edit---P.S. I like to ramble on too, so here I go, Future coop plans:
1)Paint the thing at some point to better protect the structure.
2)Paint the floor and interior walls up to 1 foot with a garage floor type of sealant.
3)Set up a deep compost style of bedding(to reduce bumblefoot potential, and make cleaning easier just rake droppings in)
4) no further plans in mind until the above are accomplished.
5) forgot going to fill in that rat gap in the front of the coop and all the way around install a concrete footer.
edit forgot one----Install the 6x12' 50% shade cloth I ordered from Amazon over the coop because it gets entirely too hot in there for my birds during the day.

 

[Farming Feathers]

So far I'm just starting to understand chickens...had a short brush with them when I was 12, but too far back in time to help me know them...
I do find it a pleasant task and the ladies I have accept us as their care givers and now we are in the learning curve to understand how to help them...Only Fancy is providing us with eggs and she is holding an average of 6 eggs per week...on that 7th day she's in the nest but no egg. Ivy the Easter Egger must have really a well hidden nest as I have browsed the area and no sign of eggs...however this place is big and cannot browse ever nook crack and cranny in one day. While cleaning overgrowth on the side yard, my neighbor shot off a gun...sounded like a medium caliber pistol, and nearly sent me 10 feet up the tree Don't know what he was shooting at but caught me off guard...just glad he wasn't shooting in my direction as he couldn't have known I was there (very heavy overgrowth with trees and shrubs)..may sound a likely like your location...But we don't have all the critters you have and glad of it.

 

[AllenK RGV]

That's not ugly, it's functional and functional is never ugly.

Thanks Chickassan, just came in to take a break from the heat. I cleaned out the coop with my trusty shovel and blue bucket! I also added a pallet board over the top roost on the pallet to cover the forklift indents, hopefully more than three birds can use that one now. I'm still going to come up with another roost idea as I don't like them roosting direct on the hardware cloth, but I'm sure they will decide I'm just crazy when i make it and do what they always do.

 

[AllenK RGV]

So far I'm just starting to understand chickens...had a short brush with them when I was 12, but too far back in time to help me know them...
I do find it a pleasant task and the ladies I have accept us as their care givers and now we are in the learning curve to understand how to help them...Only Fancy is providing us with eggs and she is holding an average of 6 eggs per week...on that 7th day she's in the nest but no egg. Ivy the Easter Egger must have really a well hidden nest as I have browsed the area and no sign of eggs...however this place is big and cannot browse ever nook crack and cranny in one day. While cleaning overgrowth on the side yard, my neighbor shot off a gun...sounded like a medium caliber pistol, and nearly sent me 10 feet up the tree Don't know what he was shooting at but caught me off guard...just glad he wasn't shooting in my direction as he couldn't have known I was there (very heavy overgrowth with trees and shrubs)..may sound a likely like your location...But we don't have all the critters you have and glad of it.

I miss that. I lived in Wise county Texas for a few years on 8 acres at one point in my life. Used to love going out back and plinking things. I'm sure your neighbor is aware of where his property ends and your begins and uses good gun safety. We all did back then, and our neighbors too. Something you have to get used to where I live is all computer lasered flat farmland and there is only my drainage ditch to go shooting and at 25 feet it just isn't interesting enough for me to do. Same for the other neighbors it is rare but not unheard of for them to go shooting and nothing in a caliber that I find disturbing. Now I do hear gun battles in the far distance from time to time over the border but it is so far away it does't even wake me up.

edit-p.s. back to chicken and critters do not underestimate raccoons I'm sure you have those.

 

[Farming Feathers]

Shucks I'm just getting use to how quiet it is here so a gun shot nearby can be a startle...though I should be use to it. Just a little surprised to hear what could be 38 caliber for an area a 22 would be best suited for. I do agree the neighbor knows the property line and where to shoot the weapon. Don't want my birds hurt by any bounced round regardless of caliber. Now about these chickens thinking you're crazy...we humans that care for chickens are well trained by our birds...consider the chicken need only do what you feel is not what they should do and walla...we do what they want us to do and fix it for them...sounds well trained to me

 

[sharkerbaby]

Jumping in to thank both @Farming Feathers and @AllenK@new2this for your service. Blessings to you both!!!!

 

[AllenK RGV]

I was just thinking of my Mom when you mentioned the 38 she used it for Armadillos digging up her gardens.

 

[RUNuts]

Thanks @AllenK@new2this for sharing your coop and for your service. As well as you @Farming Feathers .

Have you looked at the other pallet coops for ideas? Did you find any that tickle your fancy if not your wallet?

I started using recycled material and got in a hurry and bought the siding. Kinda wished I used up all the old privacy fence pickets I have laying around. They will soon become a chicken tractor and green house. I have plans!

Cheers!

 

[AllenK RGV]

Thanks @AllenK@new2this for sharing your coop and for your service. As well as you @Farming Feathers .

Have you looked at the other pallet coops for ideas? Did you find any that tickle your fancy if not your wallet?

I started using recycled material and got in a hurry and bought the siding. Kinda wished I used up all the old privacy fence pickets I have laying around. They will soon become a chicken tractor and green house. I have plans!

Cheers!

Thanks for your kind words, how did your chicken fare during Harvey?

I saw that many parts of Kingwood didn't do so well, and that is about as far east in Houston I have been. I forgot what river runs between Humble and Kingwood on 1960, but man in 91-92 that was impressive after a hurricane. It was pretty much up to the railroad trestle.

 

[venymae]

Here's a really cool website that compiled a bunch of different "recycled" ideas for coops! Lots of pallet and old furniture examples. The thing about DIY is you have to be creative, have patience, and put in (sometimes) more labor. We made our coop out of 90% recycled materials we pulled out of the dumpsters where they were putting in a new subdivision. A lady I got hatching eggs from had several coops she had made out of all sorts of stuff, and actually looked really neat! All I can remember now, is that she had an oven grate door on one of them