post your chicken coop pictures here!

[bruceha2000]

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You need to be careful with regard to the "vicious beast". Lots of people lose chickens to their own dogs.

 

[bruceha2000]

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I have found that chickens are pretty good at self regulation and yogurt is good for them. Don't know how much is too much , but certainly let the little ones try it. Look up the threads on bringing new chickens into a flock. The two layers you have now won't necessarily see the little ones as CUTE babies but invaders that have to be put in their place. Bruce

 

[bruceha2000]

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Once they are grown, they really don't need ramps at all, as long as there is enough "landing room" when they come down in the morning. I have a LONG ramp going out the barn window - it was missing a pane, perfect for a chicken 'door'. Once mine could fly, they only use the upper few feet. Just enough to get out the window, then fly down and to "stage" to get back in. I could replace it with a "balcony" outside the window, but that would be work and I have more important things to work on. Ramps are really good for collecting chicken poop and chickens poop whenever they need to. No running to the bathroom for them.

 

[bruceha2000]

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Sounds like maybe you need some reconfiguration to make the nest boxes NOT desirable for sleeping in. I presume the roosts are well higher than the nest boxes. Since chickens don't see well in the dark, break her of sleeping in the nest by putting her on the roost every night. She likely won't get down until the next day. Issues, of course, include her being really low in the pecking order or roosts that are not comfortable for her. Does she have any physical issues that would keep her from sleeping on the wide side of a 2x4?

 

[bruceha2000]

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Hold off on the nesting boxes until they are close to lay - pretty much minimally 16 weeks and more likely 20 to 24. Don't want them thinking the nests are for sleeping in.

 

[bruceha2000]

Quote: I don't think there is an answer to that!! I have a 4' long open nest box with 2 dividers and a 4' long closed community nest box with a single egg (of course ) shaped entrance hole. The Anconas and one Black Australorp always lay on the left (from the outside) in the community box. If I put one fake egg on each end, they will move the far one to the left side. As my daughter says "Chickens are funny creatures". The rest lay in the open boxes and they seem to have their favorite one and get all bent out of shape if another bird is in "THEIR" box. The Chantecler likes the open box on the left, the Faverolles the middle and right box. Sometimes there are 2 birds in the same box, especially the Cubalayas, being smaller than the others just shove in so I'll have a view of one LF chicken head and one Cubalaya tail. I really don't know the ins and outs of why one bird is allowed to share and another is not. I guess they have their BFFs. Have you tried putting fake eggs in all the boxes? I use plastic Easter eggs taped closed with a rock inside. Presumably they like to lay where another bird thinks it is safe but the egg has to have some 'mass' so feels "right".

 

[bruceha2000]

Quote: It would be interesting to know if they use the outdoor roosts. I made one to put in front of a south facing window in the barn - coop is a converted horse stall, run is the barn alley, thinking they would like the warmth of the sun in the winter. They NEVER use it. They only go on the roosts in the coop to sleep at night. Other than to go over, or beg for treats, they don't sit on the fences either.

 

[MotorHen]

Here's what I
Just finished inside an old dog kennel.

 

[MotorHen]

 

[bruceha2000]

I am looking for input. I built for 4 RIR, ended up getting 5 RIR chicks. Big enough to accommodate 5 RIR hens?? Chicks are about 2 weeks old, in brooder in garage. Thank you!

Sadly, I would say no, not even if they were only in it at night. You need AT LEAST 1 foot of roost per bird. They will mash together in very cold weather and take up less than a foot but in the summer, they need space around them to stay cooler. And MINIMUM 2 sq ft per bird on the ground where ever they spend their days. Also, consider that as built, the rain will go off the roof into the run, might want to put a gutter on it. I'm trying to figure out how to keep this as a feed and laying area since you have that nice outside nest box and adding a roosting area. Hmmm, maybe add a second story over the run, with an ell added to the run so they will still have the sun. That would be good, since they need shade on those hot sunny days anyway They won't be full grown for a few months so you have time to plan and build your addition

The drop down ramp / trap door just seemed a better and more secure type door. Sometimes just looking at other pictures of coops can make you think of easier and better ways to do some things. The mind is a wonderful thing...

The first chicken door I put in my coop was a brand new still wrapped up small replacement double pane window "insert" I found in the workshop when we bought the house. Don't know why it was there, it didn't fit ANY of the windows in the house. Figured the girls would like a door they could see through without wire. Made a frame for it hinged on the bottom so it could also be a ramp when they were small. The chickens pooped all over it. I re-hinged it on the side

classic board & batten made from rough sawn lumber

Board and batten CAN let moisture in as it runs down the boards. Water takes the easiest path.

Stain is neither better or worse than paint. Stain tends to weather more and need to be re-applied more often than paint. It's really about what "look" appeals to you. Stained wood just has a much deeper lustre and character than a painted board IMHO.

GENERALLY speaking, solid stain or paint will last longer than semitransparent stain. BUT when it comes time to re do it every 'x' years, the solid stuff and paint will have flaked and the "scrape and paint" task will be bigger. Especially if you don't want a lot of lumpy looking paint on the wall since there will be places the paint held up well and some where it flaked off entirely. That is why I do not like to paint interior wood work. Looks OK round 1, too much work round two and beyond.

This is my new coop. The rains have kept me from dressing it up, but my chickies are not quite old enough yet, just 4 weeks and still in the garage in my 'daycare' pen
Here's our daycare pen

Couple more weeks and they are in the coop! We raised ours in the tub in an unused bathroom (well we used the toilet, just never use the tub, it was as far away from a bedroom as you could get). They went out to the coop at 4 weeks because they wouldn't stay in the tub any more. I put a big cardboard box in the corner of the coop with the heat lamp pointing into it so they had heat if they wanted it.

Chickens/pullets have to be locked up in the coop for about 2 weeks to get used to everything inside and realize it will be their "safe" haven.

Two weeks? I don't think there is a "one size fits all". Put them in the coop for a day, if there is an attached run, just leave the door from it to the coop open. They will figure out that the place to sleep is up high on the roosts, they will find the food, water and nest boxes. If you let them out, to range, then yes, you have to broaden their horizons slowly. Just make a small "temporary" run with a 100' roll of chicken wire and T posts with access to the run. Enlarge it after awhile. When you open it up, stay out with them so you can herd them back until they have seen all of their range and know the routes to the coop. Mine naturally never go more than about 100' from the house or barns though no physical barriers keep them from going farther.

And teach them to "come". They aren't dogs but they LOVE scratch grains and BOSS (black oil sunflower seed). Once they figure out when you call "here chick, chick, chick" (or whatever you like, they don't speak your language anyway) it means you have FOOD! And as you said, they will see you as a vending machine. They are also creatures of habit so always give them something they like when you lock them up for the night, call "here chick, chick, chick" every time. If I go to the coop anywhere near lockdown (generally sundown), they come running because they KNOW they are getting scratch grains. And they WANT them even if they are full of grasses, seeds, worms and bugs from being out all day. If I go earlier, I can call and most of the time they all come running. Sometimes have to go out and entice a straggler enjoying the bounties of spring. Makes life SO much easier. If I don't go down before it gets dark, they are all up on the roosts anyway. Occasionally, if it is still light but they've gone in the barn, one of the Cubalayas will spot me and let me know I have shirked my duty.

Chickens are naturally wary and are creatures of habit.

The saving grace is that they are VERY CURIOUS as well. When I first offered BOSS, the Black Australorp that would jump in my lap to get earwigs (they LOVE earwigs) before any of the others could get any was like "what the heck is that in your hand" and backed off. Finally one of the Anconas (neither of them would eat anything from my hand or get close enough to touch) put on her big girl pants and dared to take one and back away. I have NO idea what a BOSS with the shell still on tastes like to a chicken, especially since they don't chew, they swallow thing whole, but she came right back and started sucking those things up. Then ALL the girls had to have some because if ONE chicken is doing something, they ALL think they should also do it.

That's when I realized they didn't use the coop during the day except to lay their eggs.

Mine are the same, never go in the coop during the day except to lay or eat chicken feed. That is why people can get away with a "too small" coop, as long as they have run space with protection from rain and sun.

You are probably right. I know I was looking at different coops before I went with the shed and the prices were shocking. I definitely wanted a coop I could walk into. I wanted room to keep supplies like food and shavings. I think the shed will work out great. I'll probably end up spending as much as those pricey coops but it will be much bigger with everything customized.

I think a lot of the prefab coops are expensive because they ARE coops, and "cuter" than your average converted shed. Some are the Taj. But, there is work involved in building all those bits a person has to do themselves if they build from scratch or repurpose a structure. And for most people, if you buy something pre-fab, you want it to look nice, probably couldn't get away with 5 gallon buckets on their sides or cat litter boxes for nests even though those type things serve many a chicken owner very well, are quick, easy and affordable. So some of it is the cost of time and materials and some is the "it is for pets multiplier" factor on pricing. Plus, there is value in providing for those "I need it now" or "I don't have the skills/tools" people. My only real issue with them is they say you can house WAY more birds in them than you should. They should say "4 birds if they can't be out of it ALL day, 8 if they have a good sized run, min 4 sq ft per bird". It would be nice if they were made modular so you can buy a small one for your first 4 birds, then take off an end wall and connect on another section that is roof, floor and 2 sides, open on both ends, then put the wall back on when chicken math hits and you NEED more chickens

Bruce