Oregon

[Stephanie R]

hello every one, just ordered my first 4 orpingtons and built my very own coop im looking for other chicken owners in the salem keizer area, people to show me the ropes of chicken care.

I live in West Salem. Have had my pullets since April 2. I have two Buff Orps, one Black Australorp, and one Barred Rock. I'd be happy to help in whatever way I can. Chickens are so much fun.

 

[Bernadine503]

Bernadine- Have you tried looking for or making a meet up in the site Meetup? Prior to moving to Oregon I had used that site/app and went to local art/craft events. it was great fun. Also check for local poultry swaps (like the one coming up next week in Benton county!!!!! yay) I hope to meet more chicken peeps there and since I am also new to the area and Oregon itself, it will be a good learning experience for me to see all the venders and meet people in the know

Hi Javaferret!
Yes, did look through Meetup and couldn't find a group for backyard chickens or anything related to chickens. My husband and I are part of Meetup but for movie groups, etc. I just thought it might be fun to get a Meetup together related to chickens and see how it goes. I just wasn't sure how many we had here locally who would be interested. Is it something folks to like? When is the next Poultry Swap in Benton County? I'd like to go!

 

[javaferret]

The Benton County Poultry and Seed Swap is this coming Sat, Oct 10th, I am excited to go, dragging the poor husband with me here is the info from their site :

Fall Poultry Swap 2015

Location: Benton County Fairgrounds, Indoor Arena
Corvallis, OR
Date: Saturday, October 10th, 9am-4p

Contact Us


This event is FREE and OPEN to the PUBLIC!



Please leave your pets at home.
Only Service (no therapy or comfort) Animals are allowed.

Fall Swap Group on Facebook

Fall Swap EVENT on Facebook


Vendor Information/Shopper Information

Day's Schedule of Events

Vendor Catalog

Vendor List

Fairgrounds Map

Local Accommodations

Coloring Contest

​

 

[Bernadine503]

The Benton County Poultry and Seed Swap is this coming Sat, Oct 10th, I am excited to go, dragging the poor husband with me here is the info from their site :

​

Fall Poultry Swap 2015​

​

Location: Benton County Fairgrounds, Indoor Arena
Corvallis, OR​

Date: Saturday, October 10th, 9am-4p
​

Contact Us
​

This event is FREE and OPEN to the PUBLIC!



Please leave your pets at home.
Only Service (no therapy or comfort) Animals are allowed.

Fall Swap Group on Facebook

Fall Swap EVENT on Facebook​

Vendor Information/Shopper Information

Day's Schedule of Events

Vendor Catalog

Vendor List

Fairgrounds Map

Local Accommodations

Coloring Contest

​

Thank you for the information! I'll plan on going.....maybe I can drag my hubbie to go with

 

[javaferret]

Awesome! Just threaten to come back with more chickens

thats why mine is going with me We haven't built a coop yet (just moved in 3 weeks or so ago) so the fear of speed building is keeping him glued to me hahaha.

 

[Bernadine503]

Awesome! Just threaten to come back with more chickens

thats why mine is going with me We haven't built a coop yet (just moved in 3 weeks or so ago) so the fear of speed building is keeping him glued to me hahaha.

How exciting. We are planning to look for some property early next year....then I can expand!! For now I have just my 3 Silkie hens, and just drool at all the other beautiful chikens I hope to someday have. My husband says I can have more chickens once we have the room.....hahaha....he has NO IDEA what he's up against!!

 

[Bernadine503]

Yes, the hen house is raised about 20 inches above the ground. Here's a link to the project of building the coop. Having it raised off the ground gives a place for the girls to escape to during the wind and the rain. The south and west sides come down to the ground for weather protection. The north and east sides are open to give them free access at all times.

One of the things I like about the sand in the run is that I can soak it down with a hose on really hot days and it keeps the run about 10 to 15 degrees cooler for most of the day.

T-traveler, I'm compiling some ideas of coops I would like us to build. Do you mind giving me a rough estimate about how much a coop like your would cost to build?

 

[Bernadine503]

What does everybody think of forming a Meetup group where we can learn from each other, make new friends, share coop ideas, field trips, natural broody hen hatching, incubator hatching, keeping our flocks healthy and thriving, a place to buy or swap hatching eggs, etc? I'm in Yamhill Co. Where would be a good location? I'd like to hear your ideas! Good idea.....No? Yes?

 

[T-traveler]

I'm a little hesitant to say how much I spent because I really went overboard, using the best materials I could (a lot of pressure treated lumber, 8 vinyl windows, 1/2 inch hardware cloth around the entire run and 20 inches into the ground, Tyvec wrapping, T1-11 siding, vinyl flooring, cupola & weathervane, 3/4 inch plywood for subfloor, full electrical and plumbing, ADOR automatic chicken door, etc.) You get the point. There are a lot of people on BYC who build their coop as inexpensively as they can (kudos to them), but I wanted something that would last a long time, keep out any and all predators, and that would meet my wife's expectations. Also, a lot of the material was purchased for both the coop and the garden fencing/plumbing, so it's hard to tell exactly. I would guess that I have about $3,000 to $4,000 in materials and I performed almost all the labor myself (as you know from the description of the project, I had the vinyl flooring done by a professional because of a time constraint, but I did everything else myself). It'll take about 10 to 15 years to recoup the cost but we now have 24 chickens, we sell about 2/3 of the eggs (we find a lot of people who want to purchase free-range eggs) and we have plenty of eggs for our own family.

If you're looking for an inexpensive coop, this is not the one for you. However, it's been a labor of love and I'm confident that it adds value to the property if/when we sell the house. I'd be glad to answer any questions regarding the building process.

 

[Bernadine503]

I'm a little hesitant to say how much I spent because I really went overboard, using the best materials I could (a lot of pressure treated lumber, 8 vinyl windows, 1/2 inch hardware cloth around the entire run and 20 inches into the ground, Tyvec wrapping, T1-11 siding, vinyl flooring, cupola & weathervane, 3/4 inch plywood for subfloor, full electrical and plumbing, ADOR automatic chicken door, etc.) You get the point. There are a lot of people on BYC who build their coop as inexpensively as they can (kudos to them), but I wanted something that would last a long time, keep out any and all predators, and that would meet my wife's expectations. Also, a lot of the material was purchased for both the coop and the garden fencing/plumbing, so it's hard to tell exactly. I would guess that I have about $3,000 to $4,000 in materials and I performed almost all the labor myself (as you know from the description of the project, I had the vinyl flooring done by a professional because of a time constraint, but I did everything else myself). It'll take about 10 to 15 years to recoup the cost but we now have 24 chickens, we sell about 2/3 of the eggs (we find a lot of people who want to purchase free-range eggs) and we have plenty of eggs for our own family.

If you're looking for an inexpensive coop, this is not the one for you. However, it's been a labor of love and I'm confident that it adds value to the property if/when we sell the house. I'd be glad to answer any questions regarding the building process.

You did a fantastic job!!! I get the idea and this helps very much.....so thank you!! Your wife must be so very very happy, and very lucky You did a fantastic job!!