Stable = Coop to be... where to start?

[MollyDora]

Hello everybody,

finally we have internet in the new place!

We are slowly but surely starting to re - build the stable and turn it into a coop.

this is the inside right now, we want to extend it to the side past that first row of Hay.
The plan is to add a few more 4x4's for structure and then add sheets of outdoor siding. the question is, should it be insulated?

we want to put some kind of hardware cloth, over the top, since the building does have a roof we want to just put some kind of wire over the top of the coop so predators can't get in, but we still have the ventilation. Where the opening / door is we want to add a door with a chicken door on it and maybe add another door on the backside (where the hay is stacked) for easy access.

Then cut a window or two in the metal siding for more ventilation and light. It's going to be lots of work since the sellers left us with a lot of trash, especially in the stable.



as for the outside, here is a picture



the roundpen will be moved, once that's done, that's pretty much the area that we will fence and partially cover for the chicken run. Maybe even extend it a bit.

it all seems like it's never going to be finished.

anybody any ideas of what I might be forgetting or any tips on how this can be accomplished?
the indoor coop needs to be very very predator proof since there is barn cats living in that barn, that we would like to stick around for the mice and rats. I do know that there also was a Racoon hanging out in that barn. So all in all it just needs to be somewhat safe.

I appreciate tips and will keep everybody posted on our progress.

Thanks,
Anna

 

[loanwizard]

Sounds like a very similar situation as mine. My cats don't eat the chickens, nor do my dogs.

I wouldn't worry too much about that.

Raccoon are a different story.

A dog is the best line of defense for that.

I have a dog, hogs, electric wire and have removed any trees from touching the barn, which has solved my problem, as well as always having a ready live trap.

I free range my birds. Every time they got locked up, bad things happened. Since I let them run free, knock on wood, no losses, except when they raid the hog feeder and the hogs step on them.

I still think the dog is the best defense since just this morning my neighbor was face booking about the coyote's in the area.

Good Luck and welcome,

Shawn

 

[ailurophile23]

What an awesome space to build a coop in. Sounds like you will need to invest in some hardware cloth for both inside and out - it will be your friend against predators. As for insulation, you probably do not need it - if they seem to be having cold issues, you can always build a huddle box inside the coop where they can roost and "heat" a smaller area by huddling together. It could even just be a corner of the coop where you use wood for the lower third of the two adjoining corner walls and maybe put a slanted roof over a small section in that corner.

As for barn cats, my experience has been that they do not have any interest in adult chickens - and if they do, it will be short-lived as adult chickens have sharp talons and beaks. We've even had some barn cats who shared the coop with the hens as it was a great place to take a dust bath (cats like this too!), get warm in the winter by cuddling up next to a bird, and find mice to hunt. Having said that, each cat is an individual and, just as with dogs, you need to watch all interactions until you are certain of the relationships. Case in point - I have had a barn cat too who thought that deer made suitable prey - obviously, this cat in particular had a vision of himself as a lion and might have tried hunting chickens too. Then again, maybe chickens would not have been large enough to satisify his "lion" hunger.

Can't wait to see progress pictures! And good luck cleaning out the trash - I definitely know how hard that can be.

 

[MollyDora]

hehe, the Lion Cat Story made me giggle. Very interesting facts, thank you for taking the time and sharing. I think i would love if the cats would share the space.

I am anxious to get started but just don't know where, I think we want to start with adding the 4x4's.

I think we'll make a trip to the local Lumber / Hardware store here soon to get some ideas. I will post pictures as soon as we have any progress.

Thank you so very much for taking the time to read and reply to this, it does mean a lot!!!

~Anna

 

[MollyDora]

alrighty... finally a little update. Things are just crazy here.

So we got a Goat, an Angora Goat to be exact. In order to get everything ready for him, the coop was pushed back a bit.
But after 7 hours of work on the stable yesterday we got a lot done.
Remember I said there is a lot of Trash in the stable and it's just a mess... well, not anymore!

Basiclly I did 7 hours of cleaning, sorting through old scrap lumber, hauling out trash, taking miles of cable of the rafters (which were not connected anymore and just a hazard and ugly looking), and took out one side of the horsebox that's becoming the coop.

My better half bought some 4x6x12's in the lumberstore and is hoping to get them cemented in the ground (anybody who ever tried to dig in Missouri knows what kind of project that is.... nothing but rocks!) today, so we can start framing it.
Already got the knotty barnside paneling sitting in the stable, ready for the coop.

The pictures are of the barn, before and after! (also I forgot to take the before picture, and we had already worked for about 2 hours when I took it! I also did not take a picture of the ginormous trash pile that's in front of the stable now ;0)

Before



After


you can tell that I stirred up a lot of dust. also I think it's sad that it does not look like I worked for 7 hours... but it feels soooo good.

 

[MollyDora]

finally, some progress is happening.

We seeded the area that's going to be fenced in and hoping for some grass for the chickens to peck by the time the coop is ready.... this barn is sooo much work. the previous owners really did not care for it.

Today we had to take off some of the metal siding and replace some boards and put the siding back on, which really does not sound as much work as it really was...

but since we got the posts cemented in the ground yesterday, today we started framing the one wall for the coop.
We're still undecided if we should do one or two doors, but that's to be figured out on another day.


I will keep posting as things happen.

the "wall" on the right is the new one.

 

[MollyDora]

LOTS of progess, we bought paint today and started fencing the outside.

The pictures are from yesterday.

this is me, super proud!


this is my better half, also super proud


this is the outside, on the left you can see one of the stalls, which will either be horse or goat stall.
We will frame a door into that opening for easy access.
If you look at my before picture from the last post you can see the progress!


just a few panels more, then we can prime and paint (it will be a light green on the inside)


this is the outside. We planted some winterwheat and other things and topped it off with hay since this is where the roundpen used to be and no grass was left at all. We just put those stakes in. (Where that PVC pipe is in the middle, the one that's just hanging there all crooked) now is a round 6x6 that's about 8 foot tall. just to give the birdnetting that will be on top some more stability.

 

[MollyDora]

nobody cares, huh?

 

[Tazman99]

I care, but I'm a bit new so I can't really help a lot. Looking great, though!

 

[loanwizard]

I've been watching. Very nice! Carry on !