Roost Question

[Algonac Jack]

I have built a 12x12 shed and in the process of putting up a roost for 15 chickens The more I read the more confused I become. I was going to put up two roosts made of 2x4's about 5 feet of the ground. The first would be 12 inches approx from the wall and the other would be approx 12 inches from the first. It is still approx 4feet off the ground. Will the chickens fly up to it when they are big enough or should I put up a gang type walkway to it from the side so that they can get to them. I was going to put approx 1.5 inches of mason sand on the floor and instead of putting up a poop board I would just rake the gravel when needed and dispose of the unwanted droppings. Am I thinking this thru in the right manner.

The egg nesting boxes will be on the other wall and a little lower then the top roost. This is approx 28 inches off the floor. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If I could figure out how to submit a photo I would but am at a lost. Sure wish I was more computer savy.

 

[scooter147]

1. It depends on the breed of chicken. If you are getting the light breeds like leghorns, minorca, eater eggers the 4 feet is no problem.
If you are getting heavy breeds like orps, barred rocks, RIR etc then once mature they may not be able to get that high, some will, some won't.
2. A board with treads will definately work but I always found they got in my way so I took a stump and placed it in front of the roosts.
3. You could always lower both roosts or just the first one by a foot and that should work just fine. Even my really fat girls can manage three feet.

 

[goldnchocolate]

When I made my first coop I made the roosts too high, because I kept reading that the higher the better. My chickens couldn't get up on them without trouble (I have mostly heavy breeds). I went out one night and watched them doing chin-ups on the roosts as they struggled to get on. I lowered them to around knee high. I have some corner braces that a few of the chickens use as a roost but they use the nest boxes (on the floor) as a place to fly up from.

The few who do get up to the other corner brace roost have to fly back down in the morning. They need enough flying space so that they don't bash into the opposite wall.

Another thing that comes to mind is that after my coop was done I kept making adjustments throughout that first summer....changing things that weren't working well and coming up with other ideas. Have fun with your chickens!!

 

[lleighmay]

Hi Jack and welcome to BYC. My roosts are spaced the same as yours but are set at 4 feet from the floor (2x4s flat side up). All my birds are heavy breeds and, though I do have a piece of old ladder in one corner they can use for access if they want, to they rarely do. In my coop expansion I'll be doing in the next month or so I'm planning to use the same layout, though I was going to add a poop board (I don't have one now) to preserve the litter on the floor for a longer period of time. Now I think I'll borrow your sand idea instead since I think it will save space (and eliminate far away corners I have to crawl to get to if someone decides to lay an egg back there or I need to catch them) and it sounds like it will be really easy to clean. Thanks for the great idea!!

Leigh