Permanent Coop vs Tractor

Apr 28, 2021
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1,549
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Arkansas
My Coop
My Coop
Hello all,
I’m at a loss on what type of coop we should build our flock. We currently have 27 chicks where 1/4-1/2 might me cockerels that’s currently TBD. The breeds of chickens we have are California Tan (6), Rhode Island Red (9), Sapphire Gem (9) and Wyandotte (3). The Cali Tan and Wyandotte are all “pullets” but I understand some sexing isn’t 100%.

I personally want to build a coop that we can walk inside and have a storage area as I’ll be the main care taker and coop cleaner I want to have a simple set up with everything in one place. I want to place a run around this for times that we will be out of town so they will still have the ability to roam free outside the coop safely. This run will have hawk cover over the top and set for complete predator proofing otherwise I plan to free range our chickens.
We live on 40 deep wood acres. There are a ton of trees and under brush which we plan on renting some heavy equipment and hopefully eliminating some major underbrush but it wouldn’t be anything the chickens couldn’t walk through. Our area is heavy clay and rocks (central AR) and so our grass area at our house is pretty limited. I have a fenced off flower garden and the dogs have about a 1/2acre fenced.
My MIL keeps pushing that we need to make a tractor coop for our flock and saying we shouldn’t free range. She’s a long time backyard chicken owner and now lives on 10 acres of farm land with a lot of livestock. I appreciate her input but I can’t imagine 27 or even 15 chickens stuck in a tractor coop all day long when we have sooooo much land.
We understand there is risk with falcons and raccoons which we have plenty of. We also own large dogs. They do have a large 6ft tall wood fenced in area that we will be reinforcing with wire. Our lab is 10yr old and carefree and we plan to leave her out with the chickens and not pinned up after an introduction period (she did well on the in-laws farm and they have a flock of probably 50). I also plan to work with my 3yr old German Shepherd who has a large bark and is very gentle and not triggered by the chicks. I plan to work with her constantly once the chicks are out of the brooder.

With that long backstory what are your suggestions?

I spent 5yrs as a vet tech and I’m very knowledgeable on animal behavior and won’t be reckless with the dogs and the chickens. I’ll make sure 10000% before leaving the dogs “alone” with them and they are more of a wildlife deterrent. I’m also a stay at home mom and I’m literally here 24/7 and rarely leave the house 😩
 
For what it is worth... Woods are perfect for chickens. They were originally woods birds. I'm having a lot of trouble imagining a chicken tractor in derp woods. My friends put chicken wire around an area in their woods and it worked very well. The rooster guards them and their dog helps and there are lots of hiding places. The wife and kids are usually home to hear when rooster or dog alerts so they've lost only a very few to predators but very few. If they weren't home so much, they would probably make a better fence. They chickens did clear the understory of their woods... maybe 30 chickens on maybe an acre (I'm very bad at estimating numbers and areas). They tried multiple enclosures to make less pressure on the land and eventually put their run over cleared land because they wanted their woods. The chickens did better in the forest, though.
 
For what it is worth... Woods are perfect for chickens. They were originally woods birds. I'm having a lot of trouble imagining a chicken tractor in derp woods. My friends put chicken wire around an area in their woods and it worked very well. The rooster guards them and their dog helps and there are lots of hiding places. The wife and kids are usually home to hear when rooster or dog alerts so they've lost only a very few to predators but very few. If they weren't home so much, they would probably make a better fence. They chickens did clear the understory of their woods... maybe 30 chickens on maybe an acre (I'm very bad at estimating numbers and areas). They tried multiple enclosures to make less pressure on the land and eventually put their run over cleared land because they wanted their woods. The chickens did better in the forest, though.
This makes me feel so much better about wanting them out in the woods. But we do have a lot of poison ivy and I’ve read it’s bad for chickens. I was mostly worried about hawks, owls and raccoons. Based off a game camera we have a few acres away we have a TON of raccoons and we see the hawks daily and call to the owls nightly. However I feel like the dogs keep mostly everything away but with the chickens free ranging I worry since my MIL said the raccoons will assassin style dive from the trees and snatch them up without a trace.
 
I personally want to build a coop that we can walk inside and have a storage area as I’ll be the main care taker and coop cleaner I want to have a simple set up with everything in one place. I want to place a run around this for times that we will be out of town so they will still have the ability to roam free outside the coop safely.
Sounds like a good plan.

I appreciate her input but I can’t imagine 27 or even 15 chickens stuck in a tractor coop all day long
Plus getting them into and out of could be an issue.
 
Tractors are only really practical on flat, or at least smooth, land without obstructions.

Your plan sounds like you've thought it through and understand your tradeoffs.

You might consider getting some electric poultry netting and plan on making some field shelters for the birds to hide in.
Is there someone I can look up what would be a good field shelter?
we hardly have any flat land here which was another reason I was worried about a tractor however my husband keeps saying he wants to use an old boat trailer that had a small flat bottom on it 🤦🏼‍♀️But it’s no way big enough to get enough sqft.
 
So. I'm in FL. Believe it or not, I have a hill. and sandy clay soils that are pretty awful.

With respect, I'd ignore the MIL, ***IF*** you are prepared for losses due to predators. They will occur, but they will occur much more frequently if you free range, as you have both aerial and trash panda predators.
Given the flock size, any mobile coop (chicken tractor) you make is going to be large, heavy, and needing serious equipment to move. If your property isn't seriously under-brushed, that's going to be challenging even with a 4 wheel drive ATV, small tractor, etc to drag your mobile coops around.

Then, the same conditions which make the coop stiff and sturdy enough to move (strong framing) will ensure it doesn't sit on the ground well, if there is any uneven-ness to the ground at all - and the bigger the coop, the larger the area of flat you will need. It rapidly becomes impractical, unless you want to hang chain link fencing in a skirt around the whole of the outside to discourage predators (more weight!).

My flock is currently twice yours. I have around 4.5 acres protected by electric fencing to discourage dogs, coyote, wild boar, about half of which is underbrushed, the other half is a mixed grain/grasses/legumes pasture. We've taken a loss or two in the past year from avians, and maybe one from ground based predators (there was a questionable kill). Its too large an area to protect from hawks, and I won't pretend for a minute that my electric fence will stop a raccoon. Not that some fencing isn't worthy of consideration, just that raccoons are canny critters.

So, losses WILL occur. and you WILL hear from the MIL "I told you so" when it happens, if I am reading between the lines correctly. If that's something you can live with, free range them. If you can't, then for entirely practical, pragmatic reasons, you are stuck keeping your chickens in the largest permanent run you can manage for them as the only way to predator-proof things.

At that point, if you have time and budget, I'd build a coop with doors on all four sides, and expand the run off of it in four directions, use rotational grazing to make the best use of the property you can afford to fence.

(Forgive the quick, very bad, sketch)
1620578464761.png
 
@U_Stormcrow

We definitely considered hanging hawk proof netting but with so much land it makes some tasks a little difficult. I think an electrical barrier would be good to keep the chickens from wandering off the edge of the 40 acres (a giant cliff that plummets to the icy cold river below) however I doubt they would make it that far 😅 if anything they might take up habitation in the cliff side since it does have a mostly active waterfall and plenty of hiding spots.

I definitely can’t imagine having a tractor to suit all the birds and the free range is the hard part. My MIL lives in NC on 10 acres of pasture and free ranges her birds no problem. I’m just trying to figure out where free range here is a problem but not there? They have spotted plenty of bears and other carnivorous wild life. Is it just because she has large live stock the small trash pandas stay away??

also the sketch is great!
 
@U_Stormcrow

We definitely considered hanging hawk proof netting but with so much land it makes some tasks a little difficult. I think an electrical barrier would be good to keep the chickens from wandering off the edge of the 40 acres (a giant cliff that plummets to the icy cold river below) however I doubt they would make it that far 😅 if anything they might take up habitation in the cliff side since it does have a mostly active waterfall and plenty of hiding spots.

I definitely can’t imagine having a tractor to suit all the birds and the free range is the hard part. My MIL lives in NC on 10 acres of pasture and free ranges her birds no problem. I’m just trying to figure out where free range here is a problem but not there? They have spotted plenty of bears and other carnivorous wild life. Is it just because she has large live stock the small trash pandas stay away??

also the sketch is great!
Honestly, I can't answer why some areas suffer more predation than others. growing up, I watched raptors take squirrels off of concrete tables while people were eating (the concrete tables were actually a danger to the raptors, and were eventually removed - protected species and all), while other places they just don't seem interested in the local meal on the hoof/paw/claw.

If MIL is free ranging, you should too - with awareness that trash pandas can be aggressive predators. I've 30 acres myself, and its rare my birds go more than 200' from the hen house or so - unlikely they will venture all the way to your cliffs, as they will likely find what they are seeking much closer to home.
 
Honestly, I can't answer why some areas suffer more predation than others. growing up, I watched raptors take squirrels off of concrete tables while people were eating (the concrete tables were actually a danger to the raptors, and were eventually removed - protected species and all), while other places they just don't seem interested in the local meal on the hoof/paw/claw.

If MIL is free ranging, you should too - with awareness that trash pandas can be aggressive predators. I've 30 acres myself, and its rare my birds go more than 200' from the hen house or so - unlikely they will venture all the way to your cliffs, as they will likely find what they are seeking much closer to home.
We’re really trying to do every thing in the free to cheap range and have spent very little on supplies and have all the free wood in the world. Our woods are extremely dense and the most it opens up is at our house but even then it’s maybe only 100ft all around the house of open space.
we see the hawks flying around but never have they swooped down in our yard - of course they haven’t had a meal walking around it either.
I guess all we can do is try out free range and hope for the best and adapt as needed.
 

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