post your chicken coop pictures here!

[MeepBeep]

I saw they also have raised garden bed and chicken coop/run in store as well but the price turned me away. 

As normal they drastically over rate the coop size... The first one is more appropriate for 3 maybe 4 chickens based on the dimensions...

If you say the other one is 2/3 the size it's probably a 2 chicken coop regardless of any higher claims...

 

[EdibleLandscape]

With all of the amazing cool designs here mine is nothing spectacular. Definitely built on a budget and I like what it has become. The chickens are free range all day and really only go inside at night and are let out when the sun comes up free to graze the land as they please for the time being. As they become more adventurous I might build a run to keep them from going too far away. Their primary purpose is to eviscerate the tick population around here which has always been a problem. I'm hoping to have 10+ birds in here laying eggs when it's all said and done. It's been a wild ride so far. Looking for more adventure to come. Hope you enjoy the pics.

 

[gocway]

 

[Latestarter]

Thanks very much for the tips! I am a first time chicken lady so I wasn't too sure about the perch. Pinterest showed them made both ways, so I'll keep an eye out and change it the other way when they are older. The picture was taken a few weeks ago - their first night in the coop was below 0 and frost, so we had it up that night so I could sleep knowing they would be warm on the sand as they weren't too sure about the perch. The lamp is gone now. How many chickens will use one nesting box in your opinion? I told hubby I only wanted 4 for 10 birds, but he made six. I pointed out that the ledge doesn't reach all the way across so we may have to add it later but hopefully they will be happy with 4 boxes. Thanks again for all your insight! Designing the coop was my biggest stressors because I couldn't find good info on the Internet

You are most welcome! Some folks take recommendations as a personal affront so I do my best to just read and move along... Glad you took them in the manner intended

You'll find that they will most likely only use 2-3 of the boxes at most. They like to lay where somebody else already has, so after the first lays, the rest will tend to go to that box as well. Typically you can figure 3-5 birds per nest box. You may have one or two who will only use 1 particular box and they will fight over it or the dominant/senior hen will get it first followed by the lower stature hen. The rest will go to whichever box has the first egg laid in it. I have some that won't even use the nest box... I have a triplet that always lay in the same corner, on the floor in the litter. I have another group who thinks they're turtles and bury their eggs, thankfully, generally in the same place.

Relax, you did great!

Your birds have a nice secure, out of the weather place to call home, and an obviously caring owner. Life for a chicken doesn't get much better than that!

 

[gpeters3]

Just finished my coop today made it out of an old tack shed we had for the horse..


It won't let me post a pic tho

You have to be patient with the editor, mine takes quite a while to load all the links for pictures etc.. Scroll up and down and make sure if they are there for up to a minute or so. One time i couldnt get the links i had to power down and reboot. Sometimes it works better to just grab any post and use the reply button. It doesnt reply to a specific post but brings up a different editor. These modern OS are so full of junk even the programmers cant keep track of the stack.....I remember years ago Autocad had to start from scratch and rewrite the whole application because they had added and updated so much it was getting lost, somewhere around version 8 or 9.

 

[gocway]

<< grandma is having fun with grandson holding chicken << nest easy pickup eggs Black_Sex_Link feed room inside click on picture see egg collecting tray




Rooster that spurred grandma --- she did good but rooster and truck did not do good at all

 

[Latestarter]

With all of the amazing cool designs here mine is nothing spectacular. Definitely built on a budget and I like what it has become. The chickens are free range all day and really only go inside at night and are let out when the sun comes up free to graze the land as they please for the time being. As they become more adventurous I might build a run to keep them from going too far away. Their primary purpose is to eviscerate the tick population around here which has always been a problem. I'm hoping to have 10+ birds in here laying eggs when it's all said and done. It's been a wild ride so far. Looking for more adventure to come. Hope you enjoy the pics.

Welcome to BYC! Looking real good! You did a nice job and I'm sure they'll be quite comfy. Just a couple of questions if I may... Have you done anything to add substantial ventilation? It looks like you even closed up the spaces between the rafters... In cold weather, your birds are going to give off a lot of moisture in poop and breathing. That could/will cause some serious frostbite issues as well as air quality issues without a lot of ventilation to let the dry cool air in and the hot moist air out. As long as there are no drafts directly on the birds when they roost, they'll fluff up and be quite comfy down to 20-30 below zero. They are wearing down coats after all. As an aside, the roost will help avoid cold issues as well if it were a bit wider... like that 2x4 turned 4"side up... They'll scootch fwd in the winter so their first toe digit is over the edge then settle down with their keel bone on the roost and their feathers covering their feet/toes. Much more comfy for them in the long run. Probably don't need to say it, but best to get that OSB sealed up post haste!

 

[gpeters3]

I find it interesting that people with acreage and other animals dont have chickens in the mix. My brother has goats, ducks, cattle, dogs and horses but never has had any chickens on 20 acres. Chickens are one of the easiest to care for and they supply meat and eggs. He is a Michigan roper and has downsized to team roping from calf roping. He cant get the feet so his job is to get the head. Myrt is skilled at bouncing the rope to catch the feet. They are dedicated cowboys. Guess you can only focus on so many things, eh?

 

[Latestarter]

Greetings @gocway and welcome to BYC! Very nice set up you have there. Your grand son is very handsome

Love the grand kids around the animals!

Please allow a comment/recommendation... your roosts are way to small/narrow and since they are at an angle to boot, will prove very uncomfortable for heavy LF birds. Like trying to stand on a dull knife edge. From the amount of poop I see on the nest box entry board, I'll bet many of them are actually roosting there or even inside the nest box area at night. My birds are sometimes found "perching" on top of the edges of 5/8ths inch particle board, but they don't stay there for long... The ideal roost for a chicken (that will be resting on it for 6-10 hours) is 3-4" and slightly rounded (round fence rails or fence posts work great) or even old tree limbs. The birds will typically put their first digits over the forward edge and settle down with their keel bone on the roost then fluff out their feathers for insulation.

 

[EdibleLandscape]

Welcome to BYC! Looking real good! You did a nice job and I'm sure they'll be quite comfy. Just a couple of questions if I may... Have you done anything to add substantial ventilation? It looks like you even closed up the spaces between the rafters... In cold weather, your birds are going to give off a lot of moisture in poop and breathing. That could/will cause some serious frostbite issues as well as air quality issues without a lot of ventilation to let the dry cool air in and the hot moist air out. As long as there are no drafts directly on the birds when they roost, they'll fluff up and be quite comfy down to 20-30 below zero. They are wearing down coats after all. As an aside, the roost will help avoid cold issues as well if it were a bit wider... like that 2x4 turned 4"side up... They'll scootch fwd in the winter so their first toe digit is over the edge then settle down with their keel bone on the roost and their feathers covering their feet/toes. Much more comfy for them in the long run. Probably don't need to say it, but best to get that OSB sealed up post haste!

The rafters have a gap between the walls about 2" running the length of the coop on either side where they connect. I have a 4" hole saw and I plan on cutting a vent on the highest part of the coop on the short wall on both sides and probably a low one on the back that I will cover with chicken wire and possibly cover in the winter. As for the 2x4 roosts I put them that way because I saw many people using logs and sticks as roosts. Perhaps I could add another one running alongside it to make a makeshift 4x4 before winter so they don't get frostbite on their feet. That's a good idea. I'm still learning and taking all of the advice I can get. Thanks for the pointers!