Newbie coop questions? Need help :)

[aart]

Shavings? It’s bedding we use in the horse stalls. The coop was built in an unused area of the shavings barn

Shavings I get...just never heard of a barn designated for only storing shavings.

 

[TheHoverMother]

Shavings I get...just never heard of a barn designated for only storing shavings.

I have to hire someone to remodel my chicken coop and was told it’d be a big project. Unfortunately, I need to get the work done before my hens start laying and I don’t have a lot of time.
Being a newbie, I looked at all the amazing coops on this site where I saw some great ideas that I’d like to incorporate in my coop.
I’d love to have a staggered roost with a poop tray, but the handyman tells me I don’t have room in my existing coop to build one! Really?!

The coop is 5.0 feet deep, 11.9 feet in length and currently has nesting boxes on both sides of the door as you enter the coop.
The walkway “thing” is the real problem (see pic below) The hens enter from the outside run onto the walkway that leads them to their nesting boxes.




Do I remove the walkway entirely along with one set of nesting boxes? How will the hens get into the existing boxes if the walkway is removed? And, I still need to add roosts. I’m stumped!!
If anyone has time, I’d love suggestions on how best to move things around.

 

[aart]

I don't know why he put the pop door(where the chicken go from coop to run) up so high.

I’d love to have a staggered roost with a poop tray, but the handyman tells me I don’t have room in my existing coop to build one! Really?!

This is the same guy who built what's there now?

What do you mean by staggered roost?

 

[TheHoverMother]

I don't know why he put the pop door(where the chicken go from coop to run) up so high.

This is the same guy who built what's there now?

What do you mean by staggered roost?

Lesson learned.. I hired a different guy! I’m guessing the placement of the pop door and the walkway was built around the placement of the nesting boxes.
I added a smaller door at ground level for the flock to use when they were chicks.
As for the staggered roosts... I found a picture on this site that looked like two sets of uneven bars (gymnast type) connected on the side with a 2x4 with the highest bar above the nesting box and the lowest bar possibly for a Silkie. It was nice ~ My description doesn’t do it justice!
I’ve got two Barred Rock hens that properly roost on a roosting bar in the coop, two silkies that sleep in a nesting box and four other hens (Buff Orpington & Ameraucana) that sleep in a pile on top of the nesting boxes. Not to mention, I’ve got poop EVERYWHERE! My little flock has made it clear that they aren’t happy.
My first thought was to stack the nesting boxes on the right side of the coop, completely remove the walkway, close up the highest pop door and add roosting bars and poop tray to the left side of the coop. According to the handyman it won’t work and my husband is sure I’ve lost my mind!
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. My little flock will be laying in the next few weeks and I want them to LOVE where they lay.

 

[aart]

My first thought was to stack the nesting boxes on the right side of the coop, completely remove the walkway, close up the highest pop door and add roosting bars and poop tray to the left side of the coop.

That sounds about what I was thinking....can't spell it all put right now tho.
Do you have graph paper, can you sketch at all?
You're going to need to draw it out for them because obviously they don't get it.

 

[Ninjasquirrel]

In my experience if you want something done right you do it yourself

 

[TheHoverMother]

Y’all are great! Thank you for the vote of confidence. I’ll put my thoughts on paper and share it with the tool wielding peeps in charge. Surely, nothing can get lost in translation that way.
Wish me luck!!

 

[blackdog043]

Below is a pic of my set up it might give you some ideas.
The first thing I would do is, take the whole walkway out. Then make a new pop door directly below the old higher one. Make it 6 - 8 inches above the floor, this will help keep the bedding in the coop, when they go in and out. If you want a poop board with a roost. Make that the length of the wall above the pop door. It needs to be higher than the nest boxes. For your chickens to get up to the poop board, make a roost like a ladder to lean against the poop board.(see mine in the pic) Your silkie might roost on a lower board. Make a landing board in front of your nest boxes for you chickens to jump up onto and get inside. I attached 2 x 4's under my nest boxes that stick out and attached 1 x 3's on top of them to make the landing board. Hopefully some of this makes sense or the pic will. It shouldn't be hard to redo the inside, they just don't get it

Here's another pic.

 

[aart]

I’ll put my thoughts on paper and share it with the tool wielding peeps in charge.

Show it to us first

 

[TheHoverMother]

Below is a pic of my set up it might give you some ideas.
The first thing I would do is, take the whole walkway out. Then make a new pop door directly below the old higher one. Make it 6 - 8 inches above the floor, this will help keep the bedding in the coop, when they go in and out. If you want a poop board with a roost. Make that the length of the wall above the pop door. It needs to be higher than the nest boxes. For your chickens to get up to the poop board, make a roost like a ladder to lean against the poop board.(see mine in the pic) Your silkie might roost on a lower board. Make a landing board in front of your nest boxes for you chickens to jump up onto and get inside. I attached 2 x 4's under my nest boxes that stick out and attached 1 x 3's on top of them to make the landing board. Hopefully some of this makes sense or the pic will. It shouldn't be hard to redo the inside, they just don't get it

View attachment 1473527

Here's another pic.

View attachment 1473536

Thank you! The pictures are a huge help. Now I understand how the chickens get into their nesting boxes and I might just get that poop tray.