Our donated coop/self built run with donated supplies and before and after paint job...

[LynetteM]

The students with intellectual disabilities in my class are thrilled to have our chicken coop that was donated to us from a middle school this past summer. It was a lot of labor getting it to the school and set up (having to cut it into 3 parts), and an even longer amount of time before I was finally given the go ahead from the principal to go ahead and dig for the posts or we would have to wait on maintenance forever... The following is before the paint with introduction of a couple of our babies to the most recent painted (not yet complete) with improvements to be made. Let me know what you think...I have 16 hens and only 6 boxes...is that enough? My 1 rooster I need to get an additional coop for...students will sell eggs to teachers to support our feathered friends and we don't want the blood specks. The chicks are 2 months old now. No clue how old before they lay, how low of an outside temp they can withstand or what a good non-gmo feed would be that isn't too pricey...any suggestions are welcome! (I am not in any of the photos as I am the photo taker...lol) Did I mention I had them all in my Florida room until they can here...17 chicks in a small area get quite smelly...lol

 

[Hope Hughes]

Awesome story and beautiful paint job!!!
Thank you for sharing!!
They are all beautiful and i k ow your students and teachers will LOVE them and them eggs!​

 

[Kenny_]

You will find out pretty quickly if things aren't working for the birds, in my opinion. I think the boxes for laying is plenty because you will find that many gravitate to the same boxes to lay. Why not just cull the rooster instead of making a new coop for him? I know that sounds terrible, but sounds like a lot of effort for one bird, but I can understand if everyone has formed bonds with him.

As far as temps go - chickens are extremely resilient! If you live in Florida then do not worry, you're golden. They have people on here that live in Canada and have -22 degrees and have to insulate their coops and keep the birds in, if I've read correctly. As far as keeping the birds in and it getting smelly, I totally understand - sweet PDZ could have been your friend - it's granules that help take the smell away. (Horse farmers use it in their stalls to help lower the ammonia levels and dry up the stall. The chickens also can eat it and it doesn't harm them. So if smells get to be an issue at the school get to sprinkling the PDZ around the run! LOL Can't have some teachers who just have to complain on you, go to the principal!)

I <3 that you're doing this, and wish you nothing but the best! I hope you get all of the answers you need here.

 

[LynetteM]

You will find out pretty quickly if things aren't working for the birds, in my opinion. I think the boxes for laying is plenty because you will find that many gravitate to the same boxes to lay. Why not just cull the rooster instead of making a new coop for him? I know that sounds terrible, but sounds like a lot of effort for one bird, but I can understand if everyone has formed bonds with him.

As far as temps go - chickens are extremely resilient! If you live in Florida then do not worry, you're golden. They have people on here that live in Canada and have -22 degrees and have to insulate their coops and keep the birds in, if I've read correctly. As far as keeping the birds in and it getting smelly, I totally understand - sweet PDZ could have been your friend - it's granules that help take the smell away. (Horse farmers use it in their stalls to help lower the ammonia levels and dry up the stall. The chickens also can eat it and it doesn't harm them. So if smells get to be an issue at the school get to sprinkling the PDZ around the run! LOL Can't have some teachers who just have to complain on you, go to the principal!)

I <3 that you're doing this, and wish you nothing but the best! I hope you get all of the answers you need here.

What is PDZ stand for? Is it costly? And CUlling would be??? How is it done??? lol

 

[aart]

Welcome to BYC!
What a grand adventure you are embarking upon.

6 nests more than enough for 16 layers.
How big is coop, in feet by feet?
Pics of inside of coop please?
What is your climate?
Putting your location in your profile can really help garner better advice/suggestions,
it's easy to add it then it's always there!

Blood or meat spots can happen without a cockbird in residence.
This video explains it:
Egg Formation Video

If you don't plan on hatching out more chicks, getting rid of the male would be a good idea. They can get harmfully aggressive and best left out of a beginners flock.

PDZ is the mineral zeolite, it absorbs ammonia.
Sold for horse stalls under the name Sweet PDZ.
Many folks use it on poop boards under the roosts.
Depends on how you plan to manage the manure.

Culling means 'to remove', could be selling, giving away, or slaughtering for meat.

 

[Kenny_]

Thanks for responding aart! I was out shopping for supplies for my coop. Today, I'm hoping to start painting.

 

[sharkerbaby]

Welcome Lynette! And as a mom of a 16 yo son with Down Syndrome, I love what you are doing for your students and appreciate the value this endeavor will bring to their lives. The pictures with the students truly touched my heart.

 

[lazy gardener]

Agreed with Aart. Blood spots have absolutely nothing to do with the proximity of a roo. Not at all related to fertility. However, your students will get plenty of sex ed if there is a roo in the flock. Also agreed that having a roo might not be in the best interests of your flock goals. You only need a roo if you intend to hatch eggs. And, even then, you could source fertile eggs from a local farm.

Kudos to you for putting such a life application component into your special ed program. IMO, every school should have a "farming" component as part of their curriculum. It can be used to teach: math, science, geography, ELA... can even be part of the gym program. The applications are only as broad as the imagination of the teachers.

BTW, general recommendation is for 4 s.f. in coop and 10 s.f. in run per bird. They need 1 l.f. of perch per bird. Nests are usually sufficient at 1 nest/bird. Crowding in coop and run can result in problems with aggression/cannibalism.

Other consideration: you might look into turning that run into a deep litter run to keep it "fresh".

 

[LynetteM]

Welcome Lynette! And as a mom of a 16 yo son with Down Syndrome, I love what you are doing for your students and appreciate the value this endeavor will bring to their lives. The pictures with the students truly touched my heart.

Thanks! I have 3 this year with Down Syndrome...every year I have had at least 1 and every one different and beautiful...all my kiddos are wonderful! Would love to show my students some pictures of your son with your feathered friends if you have any so they are not either nervous or chasing them...lol

 

[LynetteM]

You will find out pretty quickly if things aren't working for the birds, in my opinion. I think the boxes for laying is plenty because you will find that many gravitate to the same boxes to lay. Why not just cull the rooster instead of making a new coop for him? I know that sounds terrible, but sounds like a lot of effort for one bird, but I can understand if everyone has formed bonds with him.

As far as temps go - chickens are extremely resilient! If you live in Florida then do not worry, you're golden. They have people on here that live in Canada and have -22 degrees and have to insulate their coops and keep the birds in, if I've read correctly. As far as keeping the birds in and it getting smelly, I totally understand - sweet PDZ could have been your friend - it's granules that help take the smell away. (Horse farmers use it in their stalls to help lower the ammonia levels and dry up the stall. The chickens also can eat it and it doesn't harm them. So if smells get to be an issue at the school get to sprinkling the PDZ around the run! LOL Can't have some teachers who just have to complain on you, go to the principal!)

I <3 that you're doing this, and wish you nothing but the best! I hope you get all of the answers you need here.

Honestly I have some teachers that complain about me and do not like me just for being me...I am just that odd...new principal started today and she seems just as supportive as the last...at least on meeting her for the 1st time...lol Thanks for the info!