Starting construction on coop today *NOW WITH A RUN!*

[hearthnsoul]

So cute!!! the coop too

 

[mrbstephens]

Yes, the roof slanting toward the front was because he was going to make a large vent/window along the back for ventilation, but then he decided at the last minute to make vents where the roof meets the walls instead. Oops. Oh well. It won't interfere with the chicken ladder just me if I need to do maintenance in the rain.

 

[mrbstephens]

More progress:

The doors are on, the hardware cloth is over the windows and gable vents and the inside is painted. My dh has made the plexi window covers, but they aren't on yet and the ladder is made. Still need the roost and then onto the construction of the run. The fencing I have up is just temporary. My neighbors gave me 6 4x4s for the posts and I have almost all of the fencing. Just gotta put it all together!

 

[mrbstephens]

Oh, and that big piece of plywood is covering the hole where the nesting boxes will be. We don't need them for a couple of months still. I'll be painting the outside after the nesting boxes are put on. These pics were taken today which is a rainy day that's why you see some spots on them.

 

[rivergypsy]

I have seen so many great photos today of coops being built or completed. I can't help but laugh at myself because it took me the entire month of May to get to a point where I could at least move the girls in. To have accomplished this in 8 hours was incredible. I started May 1 and Memorial weekend I was ready for them to move in, but they weren't ready. I had no help, no design and learned as I went, and while I made a lot of mistakes, it was well worth the effort. Getting my first chicks in late March has changed my life. I love my chickens. /linda//

 

[mrbstephens]

Well, my dh is a woodworker. He used an architectual design program and used pictures of coops I liked to do the drawing. He picked up the wood in the morning and had most of it built in one day thanks to lots of knowledge and the use of power tools! Still, it's not perfect. We just had a huge rain storm and the windows leaked all over the fresh paint! I wish we had the plexi covers on them, but now I may need to paint again!

 

[mrbstephens]

And.....now the run!
The chicks spent the last three days locked up in their new hen house while I built their run(yes, I did most of it myself). The neighbors had some 4x4s from the swing set they took down last year and said I could have it plus some other wood used for the framing. The fencing was given to me by another neighbor. The gate, my dh put together from left over scraps from the fencing we put up around the backyard. All I had to buy was the hardware cloth and the hinges for the gate! Still need to.....paint the outside of the hen house, shingle the roof and make the exterior nesting boxes(which will be where that large piece of plywood is now covering up the opening for it.
Today we were ready to let the chicks out into the run. They were soooooooo happy!

They immediately took a dust bath in the sun. At about 7:30 pm I went out there to see if I could put them in for the night and.....SURPRISE.....they had already gone back in on their own! Who said chickens were dumb?!