post your chicken coop pictures here!

[Sylvester017]

This looks very much like her. She has a floppy comb and Struts,around almost,like a rooster with her head held high. She is already getting more feisty so may not be on the bottom very long.

Mediterranean class chickens have a feisty to assertive reputation - includes Italian and Spanish subclasses of poultry: Ancona, Andalusian, Castilian, Catalana, Leghorn, Minorca, Siciliana, Sicilian Buttercup, White Faced Black Spanish. The White Leghorn will surpass the others for production but all Meds are decent layers.

 

[perchie.girl]

Assertive... i like it

 

[Sylvester017]

THE BLOCK WALL SAGA CONTINUES

THE BOBCAT SHAVED THE FRONT AND BACK YARDS CLEAN


FOUNDATION SURVEY MEASUREMENTS (RED STRING)


HI-HO! HI-HO! IT'S OFF TO WORK THEY GO! DON'T FALL IN, GUYS!


OUR BACKYARD NEIGHBOR'S SWIMMING POOL IS ABOUT 3 FT HIGHER THAN OUR YARD! THEIR BLOCK WALL IS CRUMBLING SO WE'RE KINDA FORCED TO PUT UP A ROCK OF GIBRALTAR OF OUR OWN! OUR BLOCK WALL FOUNDATION GOES 2 FEET DEEPER THAN THEIR FOUNDATION. WHAT WE WON'T DO TO HAVE A SECURE YARD FOR OUR CHICKENS! HEY - WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR NEWLY SHAVED CLEAN BACK YARD?


THE GIRLS ONLY FIND DIRT WHERE THE OLD COOP USED TO BE. CHICKENS DON'T LIKE CHANGE BUT OUR GIRLS HAVE ADAPTED QUICKLY TO SOMETHING NEW EVERY DAY. THEY HAVE BEEN SO-O-O GOOD ABOUT STAYING ON THIS SIDE OF THE 2-FOOT RABBIT FENCE IN SPITE OF HEARING SAWS AND GIANT CEMENT MIXERS. BUT WE CAN'T WAIT TO GET THEM BACK IN THE FULL YARD AGAIN. ONE HEN FOUND A SLIVER OF GRASS GROWING THRU THE RUBBLE AND GOT SO EXCITED TO FIND GREEN AGAIN THAT THE OTHERS HAD TO RUSH OVER TO FIND OUT WHAT THE EXCITEMENT WAS!


THE BLOCK WALL BRICKS START TO ARRIVE A LOAD AT A TIME.


TO GET PERSPECTIVE OF THE SIZE OF THE CEMENT MIXER TRUCK COMPARE IT TO THE MAILBOX AND OUR MEDIUM CITY TRASH RECEPTACLES. THAT THING WAS SO LOUD AND GROUND-RUMBLING YET THE CHICKENS JUST WENT ABOUT THEIR FORAGING AS IF NOTHING UNUSUAL WAS HAPPENING!


THE NEIGHBOR'S SWIMMING POOL WALL ON ONE SIDE WITH OUR EXTRA CONCRETE AND RE-BAR REINFORCEMENT FOUNDATION ALONGSIDE. CAN YOU BELIEVE ONLY A CHAINLINK FENCE WAS BETWEEN THEIR CRUMBLING POOL WALL AND OUR BACK YARD FOR 60 YEARS? MIND-BOGGLING.


FINALLY, SOME PROGRESS ON THAT BACKYARD WALL!


I don't think we ever would've laid out the expense for a block wall if it wasn't for consideration of the safety of our chickens. Thank you, girls!
Stay tuned for more progress LOL!

 

[Sylvester017]

Sorry you've had such bad luck with chicks Sylvester. I guess I've been VERY lucky. Got 12 from Ideal 3.5 years ago. All girls and all healthy. Same with the 7 I got in June from Meyer. Given chicken sexing is a 90% accuracy proposition, statistically speaking someone somewhere has 2 cockerels that should have ended up at my house (and no I am NOT complaining, in fact I am VERY happy!).

My daughter dealt with the couple of the now 3.5 Y/Os that had pasty butt. They were raised in an overheated (as I now understand) bathroom where I used the standard and VERY unnatural red heat lamp method. The 7 younger ones were raised by a broody hen. Not a lick of problem with any of them.

Chickies are adorable to work with but higher loss is inevitable without a broody momma (which is best to have). Plus, I don't like to deal with the surplus cockerel hatchlings. In our current situation I just want the finished product - who doesn't? Going with juvies one or two at a time has worked best for us and it's wonderful to find breeders willing to accommodate shipping a single or pair of juvies. I have 3 breeders I love to work with.

I'm curbing my chicken math. Our new 4x4x6' tall Barn Coop says it accommodates up to 15 birds - eh! eh! Nope, it handles our 2 Silkies, 1 Ameraucana, and 1 Breda and NO MORE IMO! I mean it's nice and roomy for my 4 girls but not 15!!!! Do these manufacturers live in Lilliput where they think chickens are only 3 inches tall to fit their coops?

 

[gpeters3]

I think I saw 4 sqft as a rule for space in a coop for one chicken. That is only 2 x 2, almost the size of a large chicken. The reason I got the cull is the farm was too crowded. I plan to have 10 birds in a 100 sqft space with 10 nest boxes. That's 10 sqft each and just standing in there watching them I can't imagine any less would be good. I know I only need 2 or 3 nests for laying but i like the idea of each one having its own safe haven in winter. Even with one each they still fight over using the same one to lay. They will strut around clucking their heads off if one is in the box she wants.

 

[bruceha2000]

Chickies are adorable to work with but higher loss is inevitable without a broody momma (which is best to have). Plus, I don't like to deal with the surplus cockerel hatchlings. In our current situation I just want the finished product - who doesn't? Going with juvies one or two at a time has worked best for us and it's wonderful to find breeders willing to accommodate shipping a single or pair of juvies. I have 3 breeders I love to work with.

I'm curbing my chicken math. Our new 4x4x6' tall Barn Coop says it accommodates up to 15 birds - eh! eh! Nope, it handles our 2 Silkies, 1 Ameraucana, and 1 Breda and NO MORE IMO! I mean it's nice and roomy for my 4 girls but not 15!!!! Do these manufacturers live in Lilliput where they think chickens are only 3 inches tall to fit their coops?

I think they live in the land of "no one will pay $xxx if they think they can only put 3 chickens in there so we will tell them it holds 8". Caveat emptor. Sad that SO many people are taken in by this practice.

I think I saw 4 sqft as a rule for space in a coop for one chicken. That is only 2 x 2, almost the size of a large chicken. The reason I got the cull is the farm was too crowded. I plan to have 10 birds in a 100 sqft space with 10 nest boxes. That's 10 sqft each and just standing in there watching them I can't imagine any less would be good. I know I only need 2 or 3 nests for laying but i like the idea of each one having its own safe haven in winter. Even with one each they still fight over using the same one to lay. They will strut around clucking their heads off if one is in the box she wants.

OR, they could sleep on the roosts like normal chickens. Which they are likely to do. More warmth snuggled up next to another chicken than "heating" a private room.

 

[Beekissed]

I agree! You won't want them sleeping and pooping in those nests and they will still fight over the same few nests, no matter how many extras you provide. Such is the nature of chickens. I have three nests for 13 hens and they will still only use one or two of those nests at any given time...one is always empty. Doesn't matter which one, they just like to lay where the other chickens lay because they feel it must be a safer nesting spot if another chicken is laying there.

 

[Latestarter]

I think I saw 4 sqft as a rule for space in a coop for one chicken. That is only 2 x 2, almost the size of a large chicken. The reason I got the cull is the farm was too crowded. I plan to have 10 birds in a 100 sqft space with 10 nest boxes. That's 10 sqft each and just standing in there watching them I can't imagine any less would be good. I know I only need 2 or 3 nests for laying but i like the idea of each one having its own safe haven in winter. Even with one each they still fight over using the same one to lay. They will strut around clucking their heads off if one is in the box she wants.

An average LF (large fowl) is equal to or less than 1 square foot each. With 100 Sq Ft, that would leave 90 sq Ft after your 10 birds. That is more than adequate if you have a run for them or free range them as they will only be in the coop to sleep (& hopefully to lay eggs). Echoing what others have said, you don't need 10 nest boxes... they won't get used and they will eat up space inside. Hopefully you plan to elevate the nest boxes off the floor, but lower than the roost "bars/poles". This frees up floor space for the birds inside the coop. The birds will tend to roost on the highest item they can comfortably get to, and then after they fight and squabble for 20 minutes over who's going to sleep next to whom, they'll settle down and go to sleep. You seriously do NOT want them sleeping in the nest boxes... they poop while they sleep and it will make a heck of a mess for you to clean each day. If the nest boxes are inside the coop & "open" at the top, you won't need to worry about them roosting on the tops of the nest boxes and making a mess there. If they are completely enclosed, you should make the roof of the boxes sloped to keep the birds off the roof. less cleaning for you. If your boxes are external (through the wall w/outside access for egg collection) you should still have them several inches to a foot above coop floor level to keep coop bedding from being kicked into the boxes. With 10 birds, 2-3 boxes will prove more than adequate (3-5 birds/box).

Another thing to consider... if you plan on letting your birds go broody and hatch their own chicks, you don't want the nest boxes overly large... Other birds will pile right in beside your broody to lay. Other birds will still do this when your broody leaves the nest to eat/drink/poop. They like to lay where other birds have laid as it "must be safe" and aside from that then they don't have to brood their own eggs or raise the chicks when they hatch. It would also help to have a "nest box insert" so if you do get a broody, you can lift out the insert, broody and eggs all together to place in a separate area away from the rest of the flock. Makes it easier on everyone. Lots of stuff to consider

 

[Sylvester017]

I think I saw 4 sqft as a rule for space in a coop for one chicken. That is only 2 x 2, almost the size of a large chicken. The reason I got the cull is the farm was too crowded. I plan to have 10 birds in a 100 sqft space with 10 nest boxes. That's 10 sqft each and just standing in there watching them I can't imagine any less would be good. I know I only need 2 or 3 nests for laying but i like the idea of each one having its own safe haven in winter. Even with one each they still fight over using the same one to lay. They will strut around clucking their heads off if one is in the box she wants.

That's another pet peeve of mine about the square footage popularly recommended per chicken. There is no one answer about space as each chickeneer's situation and housing configurations are so diverse. I was informed that 4 sq ft per bird was acceptable and even less for Silkie bantams. Just the opposite is true for Silkies because they can't fly to get around spaces like the LF and the little buggers need just as much room to run and scratch and flap their wings as much as any LF and even more because of their flight limitations. I like that you put thought into your preparations and realized early on what would work for you.

I think they live in the land of "no one will pay $xxx if they think they can only put 3 chickens in there so we will tell them it holds 8". Caveat emptor. Sad that SO many people are taken in by this practice.
I was lucky to have grown up on a farm to know what chickens need as far as space and foraging and safety issues. So we laughed every time we saw ads that said their "coop houses 3 chickens or 4 bantams" yet the thing wouldn't even work as a single toddler's playhouse! Caveat emptor indeed!


OR, they could sleep on the roosts like normal chickens. Which they are likely to do. More warmth snuggled up next to another chicken than "heating" a private room.
I always dreamed my chickens would be normal to roost on the perches - sigh! But my first chickens were Silkies and they are pile-on-top-of-each-other sleepers so perches were never going to happen. After one Silkie lost a few toenails she doesn't even maneuver the ladder ramp very well let alone hang onto the perch. Here's where a lot of space is necessary for a Silkie because she uses her flappy wings to kinda hop, skip, jump up or down the ramp since she doesn't have all her toenails for gripping the cleats.

I agree! You won't want them sleeping and pooping in those nests and they will still fight over the same few nests, no matter how many extras you provide. Such is the nature of chickens. I have three nests for 13 hens and they will still only use one or two of those nests at any given time...one is always empty. Doesn't matter which one, they just like to lay where the other chickens lay because they feel it must be a safer nesting spot if another chicken is laying there.

That is the issue I find about 4 sq ft per bird is the POOP builds up too much. In just 12 hours of roosting there is so much poop overnight in a 4x4 space from our 4 chickens I couldn't imagine what the floor tray would look like overnight from 15 chickens! And believe me, Silkie bantams poop just as much and just as large poops as the LF! The Silkies always use a nestbox to sleep for the night - they are ground sleepers and especially our girl with the missing toenails. The 2 LF start out roosting on the perches and eventually gravitate to a nestbox for the night. I need all 4 of my nestboxes for our 4 girls and that means cleanups every morning but we're accustomed to it now. Everyone's flock is different and that's just what we are used to and don't mind. With all our block wall construction going on the coop windows are not showing any view - we think after the coop is placed in it's final location that the LF will like a window perch seat for the night.

 

[Sylvester017]

With all the discussions going on about having clean drinking water for chickens this was our solution. We don't use tap water because of it's harsh mineralization and chlorination so we use bottled water for the chickens. A jug stays clean for up to 2 weeks before we need to wash it out and refill it. I got tired of losing up to a gallon of bottled water daily in open dirty water bowls and now we don't have to deal with dirty poops and debris from chickens or wild birds! The wild birds don't have a clue how to get under the Brite Tap for water. According to the chickenwaterer.com website they say a Brite Tap jug accommodates up to 12 chickens per jug but for our 4 chickens I use 2 jugs placed around the yard in the shade and keep a 3rd jug indoors for the hospital pen. We aren't handy workshop people to make our own nipple valve buckets so these pre-made Brite Tap nipple valve waterers were the solution for our small cottage yard.

CHICKENS FLEE WHEN THEY SEE MY CAMERA SO HAD TO TAKE THESE PHOTOS THRU THE DOOR. THE SILKIE IS STANDING ON 2 PAVER STONES HIGH WHILE THE AMERAUCANA IS ON THE PAVEMENT. THESE TWO WERE MY SLOWEST CHICKENS TO LEARN HOW TO USE NIPPLE VALVES BUT THEY LEARNED!


THIS WAS THE LAST CHICKEN TO FINALLY UNDERSTAND HOW THE VALVES WORKED - TOOK HER 8 DAYS - AMERAUCANAS CAN EITHER BE THE SMARTEST TO LEARN SOME THINGS OR THE SLOWEST - IT'S AMERAUCANA NATURE TO VIEW NEW THINGS VERY WARILY.


THE 2-GALLON RUBBERMAID WATER JUG AND LID THAT COMES WITH THE BRITE TAP NIPPLE VALVE WATERER PKG



THE BRITE TAP NIPPLE VALVE WATERER PKG INCLUDING THE BRITE TAP INSULATED COVER AT THE BOTTOM - COVER GOT DUSTY FROM ALL THE YARD CONSTRUCTION


I realize this method may not work for everyone but for a small backyard flock this suited us plus we use bottled water and not tap. It's portable and we've moved it around a lot, it keeps the drinking water clean, I can handle it for clean-up in the sink (the chickens can't poop on the jug and only their beaks touch the valves so clean-up is so-o-o easy and fast), it's insulated and keeps the water cool outdoors with a few ice cubes tossed inside. We live in SoCal where temps never go below freezing so this works for us. To anticipate your question, this is the website I ordered from. Mark was very gracious to help me transition my old hens from the open water bowl to using the nipple valves. Following instructions and advice from Mark to a "T" I had the whole flock using the valves. Some hens pick up on it right away while others can be slower or lazier.

http://www.chickenwaterer.com/Chicken-Poultry-Waterer-s/1817.htm