Newbie coop design questions

[rikithemonk]

Can you provide some pics. Form your description, I'm a bit worried for your chickens. Have you read all of the "Oh my god, something killed most of my chickens last night" posts? From the experiences on this site, an coop that can't close lets the chickens sleep in the run. Chickens that sleep in the run, sleep next to the wire, on top of each other. All huddled together. A raccoon then pulls over half the chickens through the chicken wire in a bloody mess. I could be wrong, but an enclosed coop that closes with good ventilation might be a better idea. Everything kills chickens.

Riki

 

[jahphotogal]

Riki, I know... I've been reading a LOT about different designs and approaches. The wire on the sides and top is very tight hardware cloth, not standard chicken wire. Right now there is chicken wire on the bottom but I will probably replace that soon with hardware cloth.

I'm concerned about the heat in the house if I put the side on - I read another post here about ventilation that said leaving one side completely open in summer was OK. But now I"m thinking I should at least wire it so they are kept inside the coop area - just not put a wall on.

But the design I based this on, from Mother Earth News, has a door to the coop that doesn't seem to close - it's just a cutout in the plastic wall. My sense is that the chicks will want to sleep in the coop because it's more enclosed. But I don't know! Here are some photos.