Thank you very much for your thoughtful response. . I like your idea of having them on a pad, but would like if they could have a run to peck the ground and what-not. I am going to plant a wall of Amaranth to keep them shaded and busy and probably will have builders cloth over the whole enclosure. I LOVE the idea of a run -Chunnel as a fence for the garden - we have raccoons, snakes, cats, dogs, Hawks, Falcons, rats probably too! I definitely won't let them in the chicken wire areas unless I'm out with them! So many ideas! right now I need to build a warm area for the chicks. I can't find any half grown so ya.... $4.50 each! I already figured out the meat & eggs we get won't pay us back very soon. Lol But I khow to ferment the feed & what materials to use in the pen- how to build a nipple feeder for water and how to keep it from freezing in the winter. And I know I want 5 chickens to begin with and we will cull two for eating, keeping 3 for layers. I'm concerned about vaccinations and am wondering if we need to deworming yearly. So sorry wow that's a lot. I'm going to have to return to the learning section once again! Thank you so much for taking the time to read my excitement.
Our first little coop 4x6 started w/just 2 Silkies, then added a White Leghorn, then re-homed one of the Silkies that turned out male, then added a Marans, then added another Silkie pullet, then rehomed the vicious Marans, then added an Ameraucana and a Buff Leghorn, lost a Dominique chick and an Ameraucana chick. Then rehomed the two Leghorns who were too aggressive for the rest of the gentle breeds. Currently down to 3 hens and expecting a shipment of one more Ameraucana and a Breda to bring my total up to 5 allowed hens. We don't eat our pets but sure enjoy their eggs.
When we got the first coop we couldn't afford much and used a tarp to cover from wind a pop-up canopy over it to shelter it from sun and rain. A few years later and we think we can now afford a permanent patio roof over the new coop we saved 3 years for. I'll post photos after all the parts get assembled. Between a new coop and roof over it the hens will never lay enough eggs to pay for it but then a dog would cost nearly as much with licenses, shots, vet visits, medicines, feed, housing, toys, etc and you can't use dog poops for the garden!
We use organic
Manna Pro Poultry Spray for lice/mite prevention treatments once a month on hens and coop crevices/perches/nestboxes. And 3x a year we worm by using Ivermectin paste topically under the wing skin of each hen (but not while they're molting). I decided against using DE after doing a 3-month research which is a controversial subject so w/that much warnings and controversary I decided to not use it. Regular dirt baths work fine and fun for the hens au naturale! Everyone decides what works best for their space and breeds and $$$. The main thing is to be predator-proof and the pen/run will be the most expensive part of the coop to fortify.
I do love the nipple valve waterers - I bought 3 portable BriteTap nipple valve waterer combo pkgs and the water stays so clean and keeps the wild birds away from messing up waterers with their dirty poops.
I was nervous about allowing the hens out of the coop to range in the backyard but after the first month of having chickens and seeing how predator savvy my group was I let them free-range for 4 yrs now and they put themselves away in the coop at night and we just close the pop door. For hawk protection we have a pop-up canopy in the backyard, a couple lean-to shelters, a couple large doghouses, an old wheelbarrow, some plants spaced around the yard so the hens can hide when the Cooper's Hawk shows up -- s/he won't go after the hiding hens even when its only 5 ft away from a hiding hen - darnedest thing.
As far as I'm aware none of my breeds are vaccinated. There are only a couple vaccines that work for specified diseases but most poultry diseases don't have vaccinations and the poor poultry is at the mercy of many incurable maladies. I did line up a veterinarian that will see my chickens as not all vets will see poultry for those times when I don't feel qualified to diagnose (or misdiagnose) an illness. So many illnesses will display the same exact symptoms in chickens that it takes a qualified vet for proper treatment. I have one Silkie that went to the vet 4x in one year so we figured in vet visits alone her little Cadbury-size eggs costs us about $5 apiece for the year! Chickens are a non-profit hobby but they sure are fun and therapeutic. The Silkies are especially fun although they do require a little extra maintenance because of all the crests/beards/feathered feet/and overly fluffy fur they have.
My hens get such a varied diet of feed and fresh produce plus free-ranging for bugs and grasses that I decided not to ferment feed. I saw a value to doing it for enclosed poultry but mine run around free all day. Everyone does something different and no one way is wrong. If the chickens are alive, well, happy, and healthy then it must be working!
