New to chickens in Tahoe. Need advice on coop and breeds for mountain weather

[TahoeCoop]

Hi! My husband and I are very interested in having chickens at our Tahoe home. Anyone have good general advice for raising chickens in the mountains. We're at 6000 feet elevation. Summer highs in the 80s. Winter lows to about zero. We still need to build a coop and select breeds. I'm all ears ;-)

 

[drumstick diva]

temperature range sounds great - wish the Midwest has like that. I think you would do best if you post on the "where am I, where are you" thread. Post on your state thread and be sure to mention you live in the Tahoe area so chicken folks can best advise you. I would guess the mountains provide some BIGGER predators than usual - cougars, bears ????

 

[redsoxs]

Greetings from Kansas, TahoeCoop, and

! Great to have you in our community! Here's a great chart to compare some breeds by attribute. Good luck to you and have fun!

http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html

 

[angel8035]

Hello You will want to put up an electric fence around your coop. If you don't, I promise you you will regret it. I live in Applegate, about 30 minutes above Sacramento in the Sierras as well. We lost our entire flock to a bear about a month ago. Our coop had solid wood walls and a cement floor. He literally ate through the walls.

Predator control will be your biggest concern up in the woods - any breed will work well with the weather as long as there is a place they can go inside when it is cold.

Good luck!

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! Glad you joined us!

 

[Mr MKK FARMS]

Welcome to BYC! Glad you joined us!

 

[liz9910]

Welcome to BYC!

 

[TahoeCoop]

Thanks everyone. The chicken breed chart is great! I've got some homework to do. Coyotes and bears are our biggest predators around here. Potentially racoons too, but we've got a fenced back yard, 2 dogs, and are planning on a fully enclosed coop and run for the chickens. Thanks for all the great info so far. I look forward to finding lots of answers on this forum as we progress towards our goal of having backyard chickens and fresh eggs for breakfast every day!