The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[rambunctious]

Reguarding the barn..

Maybe easy access to your composter?
Rain barrel system for watering animals?

 

[delisha]

I have no idea what the cost of building in Canada is. It cost as much to build a two story as a one story here if you know people in construction..and I do. This is small (750 sq feet) yet has many rooms and would work well for multiple breeding pens. And has the whole top floor for storage.
1 Insulated heated room with running water.
Double doors facing south

 

[delisha]

Quote: They will nip the grass off..just cut a clod of dirt and grass out..

 

[kian]

Kian,
I am so glad your hubby made you a brooder box that you will not worry so much about...your baby's look wonderful

Thank you! It's in the kitchen so that helps too. But it's very secure

 

[Sally8]

Aoxa, you better not ditch us! We need you too!

HOLY COW, Bulldogma and Delisha, it didn't take you two long to come up with great plans. Actually, I laughed right out loud. I love all the ideas. sue

 

[BarnGoddess01]

I have the most terrible news I can ever imagine typing here...

My barn..

My birds.

My Clementine.

All gone...

The barn caught fire and nothing is left. I don't even know.. I don't know what to say. My heart is broken.

Aoxa, my heart is breaking for you. I'm SO sorry. My family has been through a fire so I know the horror of that but we had no loss of life. Brings tears to my eyes to think of what you must be going through. Again, I'm SO sorry.

 

[veryberry]

Again, thank you all so much for all your condolences.

I am looking to the future and trying not to see each individual life lost. It's all I can do to keep my sanity.

I have a little pullet in my basement from our very favourite hen - Penny. I am very grateful for that.

So I would love all your thoughts about starting fresh. If you had 46,000 to build a barn, what are some of the things you would do?

The insurance adjuster is here now. We are making spread sheets of our barn contents.

I'm just hoping all those birds in the barn died very quickly.

In your neck of the woods.......a large heated room with water and space for brooders, supplies, FF etc.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Aoxa ~ I'm so sorry.
I would vote for steel. lots of different pens for breeding and brooding sounds great. A nice play area for when they can't go outside due to snow would be fun. Two stories sounds like a lot of fun too, even more fun if the chickens can get to both floors. lots of roosting rafters. water and electrical of course. depending on the cold extremes, maybe even have the water piped to each area.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I wonder how much more a basement would cost than just a slab?

I say that because every time I see someone build something (a church, warehouse, etc.) I think of all the extra space you would get out of a lower level right on the same amount of "footprint". I also like the idea of having water run in the basement so that if there is ever a plumbing problem you don't have to tear up the floors. Maybe even a partly open basement like a bi-level or in a hill if you have one!

Or...would you do a dirt floor and that would not be an issue anyway?

Just thinking out loud here.

 

[countrygirl74]

Loving all the barn ideas for aoxa!

Question: Would it be okay to raise a cochin with a little silkie hen? I have a lot of regular-sized hens but it looks like the cochins get pretty big? Would they step on my silkie and squish her?