our coop and run will not be connected, what kind of issues should we expect?

[chick-habit]

Luckily our poodle has been nice to her new chicken sisters! And the cat stays inside now that his "selective hearing" keeps him from coming while I call. I'm training them to walk from the studio where their brooder is down the steps to the coop and it's so cute. Teaching them to walk the shorter distance to their run should be easy too. They get handled all the time! They're pretty good at sitting and cuddling while people love on them - we have a lot of people over to the house (no chicken owners) and the chicks seem to like the attention! They'll jump on the edge of the brooder box (when they're put away at night when it gets cold) and then hop on the nearest lap. Very cute.

 

[ShanandGem]

Luckily our poodle has been nice to her new chicken sisters! And the cat stays inside now that his "selective hearing" keeps him from coming while I call. I'm training them to walk from the studio where their brooder is down the steps to the coop and it's so cute. Teaching them to walk the shorter distance to their run should be easy too. They get handled all the time! They're pretty good at sitting and cuddling while people love on them - we have a lot of people over to the house (no chicken owners) and the chicks seem to like the attention! They'll jump on the edge of the brooder box (when they're put away at night when it gets cold) and then hop on the nearest lap. Very cute.

I learned the hard way to never trust my dogs near my chickens. They are all gentle but also all hounds and their prey drive is very strong.
I envy those people with livestock guardian dogs, but I need another dog like I need a hole in the head!

 

[chick-habit]

Thanks for the reminder! Lupita gets time with the chickens but never when I'm not supervising. Those chick peeps sounds just like her squeaky toys! Too much temptation!

 

[junebuggena]

Here is the deal. Regardless of where they spend the day, there needs to be a shelter for them. They need a quiet, private space to lay their eggs in. The main run tends to be a busy place, with little to no privacy for laying. They also need a shelter from wind, rain, and sun. So you will still need to build a coop-type structure in the run. Why not just move the coop to where the run will be, and build the run around the coop? Why do they HAVE to be in separate spots?

 

[chick-habit]

In the pictures you can see the top of the coop and beyond that the area where the run will be. We are removing three trees to make more room. In the next pic is the inside of the run area. Where the concrete ends is where the door will be. You can see the coop in the distance. I'm asking the contractor if a tunnel is possible. I'm trying to prepare for the possibility that our only option in our small yard is their coop for night and quite a large run with all the things they need (from nest boxes, shade areas to swings and waterers in their day run). Because the entrance narrows before it gets to the 3' width the run will be it creates an accessibility issue. When the run is completed it will be 25'+ x 3' for 4 bantams.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Don't you have more space somewhere else to put the run? I could see having a coop in that small space with portion being concrete slab but not an actual run. Why can't the run be around the coop? Three feet wide is not much of a run, say something like a 10x10 dog kennel around the coop might suit your needs more. Don't you have 10x10'?

 

[chick-habit]

We have a 25' x 3' run planned. That's not enough for 4 bantams?

 

[chick-habit]

Believe me, if we had more space we'd use it. We have a tiny yard in Los Angeles!

 

[chick-habit]

The concrete slab is not part of the run. It's the reason why there is an accessibility issue for a tunnel. The yard narrows before it widens and the wide part will be where the run is.

 

[junebuggena]

One issue I see is that the run area isn't very sunny. Seems like it doesn't get much light at all. Light is essential for egg production. Take it from me, I live in the Pacific North West. On cloudy weeks I get about 3 to 5 eggs a week from 8 mature layers. When it's sunny, they all lay just about every day. And if you have the space for a run back there, just setup a permanent coop inside the run. There is no reason to keep the coop you have just because it's what you have. If it doesn't work for your space/setup, build a coop that meets your needs. Since you're already going to have to build a nesting area and shelter areas in the run, it just doesn't make sense to keep using the coop on the other end of the yard.