New coop, small, street legal :P

[Panhandler80]

All painted! caulked and sealed, inside and out, matches the house. Need to tweak the ramp, add some latches, handles, etc

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A couple more weeks and the chicks will be moving in

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Pretty pup. Hope you get as much time out of that monarch as possible.

Our current boxer. He's 5 and my second favorite out of 5 I've had in a row.

 

[sailtexas186548]

Added some green trim to the rear to improve the appearance. Managed to screw up a side door so I’ll need to get some reinforcements

I made a roost in the chicks container but they seem to prefer the food bin... ready to get them into the coop where they cant do this 5 seconds after I clean it out hahaha

 

[sailtexas186548]

Pretty pup. Hope you get as much time out of that monarch as possible.

Our current boxer. He's 5 and my second favorite out of 5 I've had in a row.

Pretty boy! Ours is one unique creature, she is so smart it is a little unnerving. A chick flew the coop so to speak this afternoon and Lexi chased a little but didn’t pursue for more than a couple seconds... been getting her used to the chicks everyday hoping to keep her disinterested as a secondary food source. Going well so far

I put some mostly soil and some pea sized pebbles in the run and let the chicks spend the day in there. They quite enjoyed their first real dust baths and opportunity to scratch at dirt vs being the brooder/grass.

We also got a couple more chicks (same age as the first three) yesterday, now we have one Easter egger, one austra white, one grey/black silkie, and a pair of (silver laced?) polish. They will all be six weeks old Wednesday, and we had our last cold front for the season so they will probably go In The coop full time this Sunday.

 

[sailtexas186548]

The girls are full time in the coop/run now. I made a few more changes like adding more secure latches on the coop and run doors. I also added a block on the ramp so it is less steep and they are using it without difficulty.

Installed a hanging feeder, still using a basic watering unit, need to get the automatic one put together...

here are the girls, the 2 polish were not in the best health when we got them, one is doing great now the other is slowly improving, have her in isolation taking some Tylan in her water (started having respiratory symptoms), I think she will survive.

Easter egger:

austrawhite (who is getting more black/grey feathers as she gets older), and the silkie

we had a late cold front so I put the heat lamp in the coop, it was fine for a couple days but I guess I knocked it loose when I shut the door and it almost burned the coop down! Lucky the fire put it self out, and no one was harmed. I guess I won’t rely On the clamp anymore and will screw The light to the rafters if I need it again.

Now to teach them to sleep in the coop instead of the run...

 

[Aunt Angus]

Great idea! I just stumbled across this coop, and it gives me an idea for what we might do in a fire. Hubby and I are moving to the Sierra foothills in California soon, and I want to be prepared. Maybe a coop on wheels.... Hmm....

Nice work! I don't think they need a heat source at all, tbh. They have feathers and buddies to snuggle with. Darling chicks, too! They're all feathered out, so they're plenty warm at night.

 

[rosemarythyme]

we had a late cold front so I put the heat lamp in the coop, it was fine for a couple days but I guess I knocked it loose when I shut the door and it almost burned the coop down! Lucky the fire put it self out, and no one was harmed. I guess I won’t rely On the clamp anymore and will screw The light to the rafters if I need it again.

Or... take the heat lamp out! Can't imagine you get cold enough to ever need to supplement heat, even with the silkie.

I always wondered if I was being too caution warning folks to not rely on the clamps on a heat lamp, but here's proof! Just glad to hear that it didn't start a big fire or harm the chicks.

 

[Xalthir]

Wow, this is wildly impressive.

 

[Folly's place]

Very nice!
NEVER use the clamp!!! I agree that you don't need the heat lamp out there at all, but heat lamps need to be double or triple secured overhead, with chain to a fixed overhead object, and the cord up there too.
You missed a disaster, for sure.
Mary

 

[paintedChix]

What an impressive coop for your ladies!

Glad the heat lamp issue didnt cause any lasting damage.

I see you protected the run w/ your roofing. But you might also think about drain holes on the run. To allow water from any storms ahead of the main front. The material will still have weight when you pull it to higher ground, but you wouldnt have actual water in the run base...

I love my own simple, open air coops, but this has me drooling more than most plans/coops have. Maybe because its totally contained & can be moved - it adds to the charm.

Looking forward to updates as your chicks mature.

 

[sailtexas186548]

Well after putting these Girls on the roost in the coop every night, tonight they finally went Into The coop On their own - sweet success!

also the sickly polish has gotten over whatever she had and is doing well. still very thin but is eating/drinking/pooping normal and seems to be growing. She Was alone In The brooder the last week incase she was contagious, and somehow squeezed out and was flying around the garage all day! Poop everywhere hahaha what a mess. Back in the coop with the rest tomorrow

not chick related but I planted 3 lemon trees you can see along the fence line. We plan to let the girls free range the yard, waiting until the are too big to fit though the fence to let them out for the first time. Probably need to wait for them to get good at going into the coop at night too so they know where home is.