Thinking about egg chickens

[jerabu]

Michiganian here, thinking about getting into raising chickens for eggs. Also a bibliophile, anyone got a favored chicken book they would recommend? I don't like jumping into any project unprepared.

I own a house, with a fenced yard, in the outskirts of a small town. Have lots of wildlife in the backyard, and not a lot of traffic in the area, no big roads. My husband and I (Mostly 'I') are thinking of getting some egg chickens. We eat a lot of eggs, and I prefer organic/free range, etc. Grew up on eggs from the neighbors farm, and that stuff at the store just does not taste half as good.

We are pretty handy (or rather, he is handy if I provide materials and a plan) and he works at a home depot, so supplies are easy to get.

Local ordinances allow 3 hens, no roosters, (which is fine - just the 2 of us, and no kids to feed)

I have never met an animal I didn't like, and I keep cats, exotic plants, and a large collection of reptiles (most are rescues), but I have never in my life kept birds of any kind, aside from raising the occasional orphaned duck, and releasing it in the fall. This should be a new adventure.

I have a garage, which has a back panel that could be removed to make an indoor style coop within the garage. The garage is used only for storage and projects and butchering deer - no cars in there. I would want to add a sizable run outside of this, fenced to keep out the local wildlife. They could of course, roam the whole yard, with supervision - the wildlife doesn't seem too keen on getting close when people are out.

At any rate, I want a decent understanding of chickens, and to build any appropriate buildings before I get any chickens.

 

[TwoCrows]

Welcome to BYC!

Then you will want to stop by our learning center here on BYC for lots of good reads on all the aspects of keeping poultry. From building the coop, raising your babies, feeding your adult flock and keeping them healthy and safe from predators....

https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center

Great to have you aboard and enjoy your new adventure!

 

[jerabu]

That was quick, I am already delving into the site. Found a veritable gold mine here!

 

[drumstick diva]

Kelsie has given you great info. The only thing I can add after eyeballing your avatar - is snakes love to steal eggs and baby chicks. They(wild) are harder to keep out than larger predators. Often people find them when they reach to collect eggs and find a nice, warm snake under the hen waiting for breakfast.

All manner of predators will start showing up with interest as soon as they realize you have chickens. Every thing seems to love chicken. So please make sure the predator threads are on your reading list. You really need a Ft.Knox of coops and runs to protect them.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! X2 on TwoCrows link to the Learning Center as a great place to start. Think the basic chicken bible is Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow. and Keep Chickens! (Tending Small Flocks in Cities, Suburbs, and Other Small Spaces) by Barbara Kilarski. and The Chicken Health Handbook by Gail Damerow. are other nice ones... all are on Amazon I think.
You might want to double check if your ordinance says anything about coop placement, some require them to be so many feed away from human dwellings.

 

[gander007]

 

[Mr MKK FARMS]

 

[jerabu]

I read the ordinance from front to back, and no requirements are given on coop placement or size, only that the animals must be well cared for, and fed a good diet, which to me is a bit of a no-brainer. In the interest of being a good neighbor, it won't be near a property border. Don't wanna irritate my neighbors, and end up with them pleading with the township to change the ordinance and wreck it for anyone else in the area keeping chickens. I am actually hoping to place it near the back of my house (rather than my garage) for ease of care during colder months, and because my house is 'L' shaped, it provides considerable protection from winds. A tall wooden privacy fence means it would have a wall of some type on 3 sides.

After we thought about it, there are no cars in the garage, but we do store (and use) the power tools out there, so maybe not such a good idea to scare the living daylights out of chickens with loud noises.

We do have snakes in my yard, as well as deer, groundhog, rabbit, feral cat, etc. There is a strong coyote presence in the area, and though I have not seen them, I won't rule out foxes, stray dogs, or anything else. The coop and run I build will have to be pretty strong, and will probably have hardware cloth or other suitable deterrent extending well below the dirt line to keep any diggers out of it. I don't see any real way of keeping out a determined snake though. Owning as many as I do, I know their capabilities in terms of climbing, and tight spaces. We do have venomous snakes in the area, but I have yet to see them on my property. The only thing I have seen yet are Garter snakes (I love snakes, but I don't love them enough to share my eggs, lol.)

How does one snake-proof a coop? I know how to keep a snake IN an enclosure, but keeping it out is a new adventure.

 

[TwoCrows]

Make sure there are no small holes anywhere that snakes can enter. Don't leave eggs out over night as the snakes come in for the eggs. Use Hardware cloth instead of chicken wire. Chicken wire can not only be chew thru, but lots of things can climb those the holes in chicken wire like snakes, rats, mice, giant spiders. LOL

Also, keep clean facilities. Mice attract snakes. Snakes eat mice, eggs and chicks.

 

[jerabu]

All good advice. I much prefer hardware cloth over chicken wire for all my other projects, so I intended to stay with it for this one as well. Half inch, or should I go all-out and use 1/4"? or maybe both? using the finer stuff on the lower portions, and the 1/2" higher up?

Mice are a pain. In that respect, elevating the coop might be beneficial, and making a barrier mice can't climb. But then you lose heat through the floor as well Not to mention, they can dig.

Not sure how far below the dirt the fence should extend. We have a pesky groundhog that routinely digs over 3 feet to get into my crawlspace. That's a long way to dig a fence in!