Open front coop done, chicken yard in progress

[igorsMistress]

@peterlund we do have different predators. Mostly hawks, owls and neighborhood cats. It's been quite some time, years, since I've seen a coyote here and there are plenty of easier pickins elsewhere in my neighborhood. I've heard about raccoons in central Phoenix but no evidence here of them.

This is very temporary and right outside my bedroom, so if the rooster in the big coop goes off, I'll be right there. Hoping for the best, hubs is looking at knee surgery and by the time I get anything major done by myself the littles will be old enough to be in the big coop. I don't like it, been out to check on them a few times last night.

 

[Diannastarr]

very very nice !!! my complements to the builder...!!! looks like your little flock will be very happy in their new beautiful home...! good job...!!!

 

[Diannastarr]

Looks great. I have a question. Do you have a lesser predator problem out in AZ than i do here in the Northeast?
If my coops only had chicken wire my girls would be gone in a week. Racoons would rip thru that in no time.
Love the thought that went into your design. Smart!

im in south east AZ a mile hi in the mountains in Bisbee AZ my hens are in a large coop at night like this one pictured here, wire and mostly open i have never had a problem since we started our flock in the state of AZ my whole flock of 75 are out free ranging most of the time nothing has ever harmed one of them , except one death from snake bite , so other then an occasional rattle snake, nothing has bothered my birds but its good we have a lot of AZ king snakes to eat those horrible rattlers, gotta love those king snakes..!! they do a great job..!! but not here so far nothing from on land or from the sky has ever hunted my birds .!!!

 

[igorsMistress]

@Diannastarr thank you for the compliment on the coop. Also happy to know someone else has a similar design and it's working! My big coop is covered in hardware cloth and we really love the openness of it.

You have many more chickens than I so I'm sure there's more warmth in winter, but do you cover the open side when it's freezing or just leave it open?

 

[Diannastarr]

@Diannastarr thank you for the compliment on the coop. Also happy to know someone else has a similar design and it's working! My big coop is covered in hardware cloth and we really love the openness of it.

You have many more chickens than I so I'm sure there's more warmth in winter, but do you cover the open side when it's freezing or just leave it open?

yes that hard ware cloth is some great stuff..! my chick grow out pen is covered in it..! well yes , i try to button down my coop up good in winter, even thou most of my flock are very winter hardy breeds .its the hot summers that is the worst for them,& thats were i put my money is in keeping them cool i have a cooler for their open air coop they really love that , they spend most days in their laying around and laying eggs ,but about winter i expect that your winter is a lot less cold then here in Bisbee, ive seen it go down to almost zero one night granted it was for only an hour or so, but it gets cold at night here, its been in the low 40's for a wile now and one year we had something like 6 to 8 inches of snow, thats never happened in the 30 years i have been here , and we didn't have boots just normal shoes & the snow went right in our shoes...lol... after that i bought barn boots...lol...so you never know what any night will turn into , so yes i would keep your birds free of any drafts that's the most important . some breeds call for at least a wind break , my goodness thats not how i would ever treat my birds, i make sure my birds are well protected , and unless you have Barred Rocks which are the only breed that does group together to keep warm , but no matter what you should make sure your birds are well protected. good luck and great coop you got there..!!

 

[igorsMistress]

Ok good to know, thanks! It does freeze here in winter sometimes. I have some wood panels that we add to the front to keep it warmer and keep out wind.

 

[igorsMistress]

4 new additions, all Australorps. The black is a male we aren't keeping. The three blues from left to right are Donut a pullet, (Blue) Kazoo is a cockerel, and another pullet Indigo . They're 8.5 and 9.5 weeks now.

 

[Diannastarr]

View attachment 1168606

4 new additions, all Australorps. The black is a male we aren't keeping. The three blues from left to right are Donut a pullet, (Blue) Kazoo is a cockerel, and another pullet Indigo . They're 8.5 and 9.5 weeks now.

i love the names you gave them , especially the blue Kazoo....lol.... good one

 

[igorsMistress]

Successfully moved the littles to the big coop tonight. There's a landing at the top of the ramp at roost level and they're all snuggled together.

I put a small, wire dog crate on the floor, but I don't think they'll ever use it.

I was out in the yard with everyone to observe changes in flock dynamics without my roo. The big girls spent all morning with me as I tore down the little coop and cleaned things up. We started with coffee and greens on the patio. The littles avoided us for the most part.

This evening when the big girls came into the yard they chased the littles some but nothing too serious. There's not a lot of mingling together, but not any bullying.

 

[aart]

There's not a lot of mingling together, but not any bullying.

No bullying is good!
They won't really merge/mingle until the little girls start laying and work their way into the pecking order. Hopefully that cockerel has manners by the time his hormones flow.
They sure are pretty!