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- #6,891
Today was warm. Even I have to admit this. Around 27C in Bristol.
I've got a problem. I had planned to seperate the run from the old coop and patch it on the the front of the new coop. I started taking it apart and it''s not a realistic proposition. All the wood work at the base is buried and rotten. The roof is a mixture of polycarbonate, wood, plywood and plastic. Few of the fixings are going to undo. I'll end up with a wobbly bit of mesh on a broken frame with the bottom rotting out.
I'm going to have to build a coop run.
The last two pictures show what the problem is. Henry and an increasing number of his hens prefer to roost outside. I don't think that the condition or the arrangement of the coop is the problem. The fact that it is a coop is the problem.
Someone will have to explain to me quietly one day how it is possible that Ex Battery hens have gone from being completely captive, having never even seen grass let alone eaten any, to wanting to roost outside with their rooster.
Most nights now I find 6 on the roost bar with Henry, two or three on the box top underneath. There are usually two half in half out of the coop popdoor and maybe one or two wandering about undecided.
I'm all for them roosting outside but I want a more secure coop run.
I'm going to try a basic hoop extension made from half inch 14 guage weldmesh. There are already fixing points on the front edge of the new coop to fix the run Solway sell. I'm thinking of a 2 metres long hoop. Where I am a bit unstuck is the best way to block off the open end and provide a door.
The other problem is the top of the run will be domed following the line of the coop itself. I need to fit a water proof ceiling to it that won't got torn off, or turn the whole thing into a large sail.
I've got a problem. I had planned to seperate the run from the old coop and patch it on the the front of the new coop. I started taking it apart and it''s not a realistic proposition. All the wood work at the base is buried and rotten. The roof is a mixture of polycarbonate, wood, plywood and plastic. Few of the fixings are going to undo. I'll end up with a wobbly bit of mesh on a broken frame with the bottom rotting out.
I'm going to have to build a coop run.
The last two pictures show what the problem is. Henry and an increasing number of his hens prefer to roost outside. I don't think that the condition or the arrangement of the coop is the problem. The fact that it is a coop is the problem.
Someone will have to explain to me quietly one day how it is possible that Ex Battery hens have gone from being completely captive, having never even seen grass let alone eaten any, to wanting to roost outside with their rooster.
Most nights now I find 6 on the roost bar with Henry, two or three on the box top underneath. There are usually two half in half out of the coop popdoor and maybe one or two wandering about undecided.
I'm all for them roosting outside but I want a more secure coop run.
I'm going to try a basic hoop extension made from half inch 14 guage weldmesh. There are already fixing points on the front edge of the new coop to fix the run Solway sell. I'm thinking of a 2 metres long hoop. Where I am a bit unstuck is the best way to block off the open end and provide a door.
The other problem is the top of the run will be domed following the line of the coop itself. I need to fit a water proof ceiling to it that won't got torn off, or turn the whole thing into a large sail.
. But the security of the run was always one of your concern from the start so you would have needed to do something sooner or later.
