Store bought coop

[mattv1984]

I bought a coop from tractor supply. Has anyone else used these and are they any good? Thanks.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I haven't used them. My only comment is that all manufactured coops I've seen exaggerate the number of birds they'll hold.

 

[aart]

Ditto most are way too small for population advertised.
Many can be under-ventilated and not so weather proof.
They can be great for growing out chicks, broodies, hospital/isolation coops....
......but not so great for more than a few full sized adult birds.

Some have done extensive modifications to make them work better:
advanced search>titles only> pre fab coop

 

[mattv1984]

I may use it for the summer. They have just now feathered out. I've seen some good ideas for coops made out of pallets. Plus I can get all the free pallets I want from my job.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

There you go.
There are lots of ideas in the COOPS tab at the top of the page.

As aart said, it will make a great quarantine building or broody apartment when you build another.

 

[BleuSaphir]

I would rather get nice shed kit and modify it than buy most store bought chicken coop.

 

[mobius]

I would rather get nice shed kit and modify it than buy most store bought chicken coop.

That is probably the best idea if you aren't going to build it yourself!

 

[mattv1984]

Hopefully this one gets through te summer while I work on a bigger, better one.

 

[realsis]

I may use it for the summer. They have just now feathered out. I've seen some good ideas for coops made out of pallets. Plus I can get all the free pallets I want from my job.

...

Hopefully this one gets through te summer while I work on a bigger, better one.[/quote

When I first got chickens a few years ago I made a HUGE mistake and ordered a coop and run. I had spent a lot of money by my standards and was really excited. When it arrived I almost cried. It looked like a toy version of what I thought I'd ordered! ! The wood was SUPER THIN. The house wasn't weather proof and the whole unit was ridiculous. We ended up having to part it out and used parts to add to make a somewhat hen house. We made a Real Chicken run.after three years my DH is FINALLY building a real full size coop and I'm so happy and greatful. I'd wasted my money on the other coop. It was so awful!

 

[BirdHead]

I haven't used them. My only comment is that all manufactured coops I've seen exaggerate the number of birds they'll hold.

They can hardly hold a pair on top of the look cheesy and ugly.