New to chickens in AZ

[janiedoe]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[Lpsouth1978]

Progress has been made on the new larger coop section. We are basically done with it, just need to install the roosts. Then all that is left is moving the girls AND the old coop, followed by attaching the old coop to the new one. You can see the giant hole in the side of the new coop. This is where the door to the old will open into the new, effectively making them one large coop. It is a very simple design, but should work nicely and provide plenty of space for ALL of the current flock and the chicks we are waiting on.

They will have access to the entire side yard, approximately 1200sq ft. I think the ladies will really like the extra space! We are still considering what to do to cover the ground to keep mud at bay during the monsoon storms, but we will probably lay down gravel topped with playground mulch.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

today was the day. We finally moved the old coop and attached it to the new. We basically had to re-build the run after moving it, but overall things went pretty smooth. Only thing we still need to do is get the shade cloth hung over the entire area. We have the cloth, but ran out of time to get it hung today. That will likely be a project for next weekend.

In all we got water run to both coops, got the misting system put together, installed, and tested, cleaned out the old coop and put fresh pine shavings in both, cleaned up the whole area and got the girls moved into their new digs. They have had a stressful day and are not willing to leave the old coop and run yet, but everything is open for them to explore once they are comfortable.

As a reward for being so well behaved today, they got 1/4 of a watermelon, and happily tore into it as soon as I set it down.

 

[TwoCrows]

Progress has been made on the new larger coop section. We are basically done with it, just need to install the roosts. Then all that is left is moving the girls AND the old coop, followed by attaching the old coop to the new one. You can see the giant hole in the side of the new coop. This is where the door to the old will open into the new, effectively making them one large coop. It is a very simple design, but should work nicely and provide plenty of space for ALL of the current flock and the chicks we are waiting on.

They will have access to the entire side yard, approximately 1200sq ft. I think the ladies will really like the extra space! We are still considering what to do to cover the ground to keep mud at bay during the monsoon storms, but we will probably lay down gravel topped with playground mulch.


View attachment 3453757

today was the day. We finally moved the old coop and attached it to the new. We basically had to re-build the run after moving it, but overall things went pretty smooth. Only thing we still need to do is get the shade cloth hung over the entire area. We have the cloth, but ran out of time to get it hung today. That will likely be a project for next weekend.

In all we got water run to both coops, got the misting system put together, installed, and tested, cleaned out the old coop and put fresh pine shavings in both, cleaned up the whole area and got the girls moved into their new digs. They have had a stressful day and are not willing to leave the old coop and run yet, but everything is open for them to explore once they are comfortable.

As a reward for being so well behaved today, they got 1/4 of a watermelon, and happily tore into it as soon as I set it down. View attachment 3468974View attachment 3468975View attachment 3468976

Nice coop!

 

[triciayoung]

Nice coop!

You are doing great - mostly because you care, but also because of all of the hard work. Your new coop looks great.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

I know it seems like I come on here every week and say that we are finally done with this project, but we completed another part of it today. We were finally able to get the shade cloth installed over the run. It took a bit longer and was more work than anticipated to pull it completely tight. Also, I may have underestimated the size of the side yard where the chickens are. We purchased a 20'x22' shade cloth, but I am wishing we had gone larger.

The cloth still covers a large part of the yard and will certainly give some relief during the SCORCHING Arizona summer. You can really feel the difference when you step into the shade. Add the misters and it is actually kind of pleasant in there (though it was only in the low 90's today).

 

[TwoCrows]

I know it seems like I come on here every week and say that we are finally done with this project, but we completed another part of it today. We were finally able to get the shade cloth installed over the run. It took a bit longer and was more work than anticipated to pull it completely tight. Also, I may have underestimated the size of the side yard where the chickens are. We purchased a 20'x22' shade cloth, but I am wishing we had gone larger.

The cloth still covers a large part of the yard and will certainly give some relief during the SCORCHING Arizona summer. You can really feel the difference when you step into the shade. Add the misters and it is actually kind of pleasant in there (though it was only in the low 90's today).

View attachment 3477926View attachment 3477924View attachment 3477925

Looks really good!

 

[Lpsouth1978]

I got the call yesterday confirming that the new chicks will ship out early next week and should arrive middle of the week. We were originally going to brood the chicks inside the coop, but with temps being 100+ regularly now, we have decided to keep them indoors for a while instead (not the ideal situation, be we will make it work).

I am in the process of preparing the brooder setup for their arrival. I ordered some reusable brooder pens, made of corrugated plastic panels, that I will connect to make one large brooder. They come with mesh tops as well, so I can keep the chicks from jumping out. I also ordered a couple Rent-a-Coop 2L waterers, feed troughs, and the largest Rent-a-coop brooder plate. I should have everything setup this weekend and have time to test everything to make sure it is ready for the chicks.

 

[Kenneth Zweerink]

Thank's for the update. The Best of Luck with your Chicks when they arrive.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

Ok, so we got the brooder set up and everything running. We had to go to TSC to get some pine shavings and starter feed and while we were there we decided to get a few chicks ahead of the shipment we will get in a few days. The idea was to get 3 chicks now because it would be easy to teach them where the water and food were and then they would show the new chicks in a few days. Unfortunately, TSC had requires a minimum of 4 chicks, so we naturally left with 10. Chicken math at it's best.

We ended up with 5 White leghorn pullets and 5 Blue Plymouth Rock pullets. They are all doing well and took to the vertical nipple drinker immediately. Now they mostly race between the waterer and the brooder plate, with periodic stops at a feeder.

Now for a couple of pics and a short video.