The Coop Dilemma: Why An Old Barn WON'T Work

[TheCompoundBlog]

We have a nice old shed sitting in our driveway. It's in great shape. Very spacious. Would probably house 50 chickens were we that enterprising. Alas, the problem - see letter Diagram:

TTT SHED *******
DDDD R
DDDD O
H DDDDDDDDDDD A
O DDDDDDDDDDD D
U DDDDDDDDDDD *
S Y A R D----------> *
E A *
R
D

Ok, the crude map above represents position of the shed. As the map shows, the shed is basically in the driveway. (The Ds). The driveway connects to the road and across the driveway is a sizeable yard. The problem is, if the empty shed were converted to a coop, it would pose the problem of birds wandering out into the road and becoming a fatality, in which case, we'd have to buy fencing and a gate which makes the point of repurposing the shed pointless since the cost would be about the same as getting a coop (or building one, which I could prefer). Any input from anyone?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Fencing is expensive.
Is it possible to dismantle and move the shed to a safer location? At least you won't need to buy materials.
You could also reconfigure it to make it even more suitable for chickens.

I'm right on a busy street with no fences but all the coops are at the back of the property and the closest they get to the road is about 100 feet.

 

[Finnie]

Is there somewhere you could move your shed to? Depending on its size, a lot of sheds are moveable. That's what we were told when we had our shed put in. The guy said that's why it doesn't need a building permit, because it's not considered permanent. (And it's not above a certain size.)

He said jack it up, put rollers under it, move it where we want it, and settle it onto the same blocks it's on now, just leveled into the new space.

Is the yard you are considering using safe from the road because it's already fenced in? In that case, you are probably right that it would be more cost effective to build something new that utilizes the existing fence.

I have also seen chicken tunnels on a website, made of chicken wire, that could be used to connect across the driveway from the coop door to the gate in the yard once in the morning and then once again in the evening. I think that would get old fast, though.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Chickens will take quite a hike looking for treats and places to lay their eggs ... especially once they're comfortable with a particular location. If you want to keep chickens within several hundred yards of places you don't want them to go, then I don't see how fencing/confinement is optional.