New to the community, just bought pullets

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3LP0LL0L0C0

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Sep 2, 2018
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Hi everyone,
I have had a dream of buying a house in the country just so that I can have chickens again (my family had them when I was a kid).

This year I realized my dream and bought a huge house in the country and just recently bought 5 pullets 2 weeks ago (2 Barred Rocks, 3 Rhode Island Reds). They are in a cage in my office with a brooder heater, this weekend we are starting to build the coop (pre-fab from Tractor Supply). The coop box says it can house 18 chickens but I think realistically its half that or less.

I plan on building a 12'Wx16'Lx8'T Run using pressure treated wood with a stainless steel corrugated roof for added protection (there are lots of predators out here; hawks, skunks, trash pandas, mink, foxes, possums, and rats in my area) and buried wire cloth 2' deep.



Besides an electric fence, is there anything else I should consider besides what I have described above?


I would love some feedback to protect these ladies and give them a good space.

Thanks.
 
Your run design sounds good. May want to go a little bigger. Chickens never stay the number you start with. The coop... Well I'll just say I'm not a fan of premade. The capacity is optimistic, the materials are questionable, and they're designed for curb appeal to the consumer, not the living of the chickens. Usually for the price, you can build a much more suitable living area. Don't be surprised if you need to make some upgrades and improvements. Once you get things together, you can post some pics and we'll be happy to help with anything lacking. You sound like you are heading in the right direction.
 
3LP0LL0L0C0 said:
Hi everyone,
I have had a dream of buying a house in the country just so that I can have chickens again (my family had them when I was a kid).

This year I realized my dream and bought a huge house in the country and just recently bought 5 pullets 2 weeks ago (2 Barred Rocks, 3 Rhode Island Reds). They are in a cage in my office with a brooder heater, this weekend we are starting to build the coop (pre-fab from Tractor Supply). The coop box says it can house 18 chickens but I think realistically its half that or less.

I plan on building a 12'Wx16'Lx8'T Run using pressure treated wood with a stainless steel corrugated roof for added protection (there are lots of predators out here; hawks, skunks, trash pandas, mink, foxes, possums, and rats in my area) and buried wire cloth 2' deep.



Besides an electric fence, is there anything else I should consider besides what I have described above?


I would love some feedback to protect these ladies and give them a good space.

Thanks.
Click to expand...
awesopme.jpg

A covered run for hawk protection. Raccoons can get the chickens if you use regular wire. The bottoms need to be hardware cloth
 
Welcome to Backyard Chickens! We are glad you joined the flock!:frow BYC is a helpful site providing all the information you need to know about poultry! If you have those kind of predators always looking for your chickens, a safe secure coop is definitely recommend! Possums and coyotes are really the only predators I have in my area. Hope you enjoy it here as much as we all do!
 
Maria's Chickens said:
Hi, I'm new, too...bought 8 pullets at TS recently...Have them in a 'biddie-coop' for now that my Hubby and neighbor built...will do for another month or 2...then hope my Hubby will build a big coop and run with it. Since we are both new, I look forward to reading your messages. Welcome.
Click to expand...
Welcome. A month or two may be optimistic for 8 pullets in a brooder. You may want to start looking at coop designs a bit earlier.
 

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