Playground for chickens?

[his4ever]

So how we got started... someone gave us their coop, because they heard that we (I menan, I) wanted to have chickens (they were not allowed to have chickens on their property). So we built a run and then added the coop to it. The only thing we have left to do is some sort of roof thing to give the dears some shade and keep the raccoons out (did you know they can climb?!?!) . Anyways. Since the coop is really high, I was wondering would it be silly to put some spots for the chickens to hangout in some of the upper areas? Do chickens like to do that kind of thing? Or do they prefer to just scratch on the ground all day.

Here is a picture of the run and coop. It's still a work in progress.

 

[Urban Chaos]

hang some logs for them to perch on, others hang potted plants or suspend heads of lettuce for them to jump to.

 

[his4ever]

Wow that all sounds brilliant! I thought my girls would appreciate something to perch on when they are roaming about. They have their perch they sleep on in the coop. But now I will have to add a little more to the inside of their run to make it a wee bit more fun.

Thanks!

 

[Gardengirl 2011]

I screwed an extra fence post (a skinny one

) from one side of the corner to the other. It provides a day roost for them and before I even had it screwed up there, one was on it. It was still bungie corded while I screwed in the other side.

I have also seen people lean a ladder against a post and screw that in to give them more roost space.

It's hard to tell, but do you have anything other than chicken wire on the bottom of your run? If not, you might want to reconsider that. Chicken wire won't keep out predators.Your coop/run looks great.

 

[Judy]

Yup, mine jump up on everything in the coop -- waterers, garbage cans that store feed, a door to a pen in the coop, you name it. Even the old ladies do it.

 

[his4ever]

I still need to put some hardware wire (to keep snakes out) and I am thinking about large stones around the bottom edge. Any other suggestions? Thanks! I now know that Raccoons can climb and get under bird netting. We will be putting chicken wire and cover half of the run with a roof (that's not a tarp). Do I need to know of any other ways that coons can get in?

 

[andalusn]

Chickens love to roost on anything at least a few feet off the ground. Younger ones, slightly lower. I just gave my April batch a fresh flake of oat hay to play with. I just toss it in and they take care of spreading, scratching and finding the treasure of seeds within. They love hay to explore and then take a nap in.

 

[anderson8505]

Mine love to roost as high as they can go. My coop builder put in a perch as long as the coop about 4 1/2 feet high, then added a short perch another foot higher. All 11 want to roost together on the short & high perch.

 

[his4ever]

If I put a perch out there in the run, will they still go in at night to sleep on their coop perch?

 

[Urban Chaos]

that hasnt been a problem for me - maybe because they were used to perching inside, then the outside perch appeared? Another good idea mentioned several times on this site is a "chicken salad bar" - it allows greens to grow just high enough for the chickens to eat the tops without killing the plants. If you throw leaves in after a raking, they really have fun.