Thoughts on what I might need to do better?

[Ladyblackswan]

My husband's been working on an "upcycled" coop for our little backyard flock and it's our first attempt at a homemade coop. Its about 5x5 and nice and tall so they have a nice perch. We made one large nesting box on the outside. The door to the "chicken plank" is off in this photo, but it does have a door that slides up and will latch at the bottom for safety reasons. The top has an open vent under the roof along the front. He still needs to trim it out and paint it, but it's a start! Please excuse the wood just hanging around, it's still a work in progress.

 

[RoostersCrow HensDeliver!]

Definitely put some cross pieces of wood on your ramp, the chickens will slide down it and not be able to get back up.
Where are your feeder and water going to be located? If underneath the coop, you might want to make a wind block so that rain doesn't blow into the feeder and soak the feed.
Just some suggestions. Best of luck with your little flock!

 

[Ladyblackswan]

Definitely put some cross pieces of wood on your ramp, the chickens will slide down it and not be able to get back up.
Where are your feeder and water going to be located? If underneath the coop, you might want to make a wind block so that rain doesn't blow into the feeder and soak the feed.
Just some suggestions. Best of luck with your little flock!

I actually just asked Hubby to do that today...they were sliding down the ramp this morning and although my daughter enjoyed the show, I was thinking they needed a little purchase. He also said something about putting some shingles on the ramp so they don't slide when it starts to snow. I was thinking I might put the feeder inside the coop in the back corner, maybe hanging? We get a lot of snow here in the winter. The water dish will be outside and under the main coop so we can plug it in during the day when we are home when the temps fall.

 

[RoostersCrow HensDeliver!]

I keep my feeder inside and water outside also. (Until the winter, when the heated waterer goes inside.)
I have a ladder for my girls, but my mother has something like yours with 1/2 inch pieces of leftover wood trim from the house. That way the girls can get a good grip as they go up and down.
How many chickens do you have? I hope your coop is big enough. The girls don't like to go out in the snow so they spend at least 3/4 of they day in the coop.

 

[Ladyblackswan]

We have four chickens....one Partridge Wyandotte Bantam Rooster, one Mottle chochin bantam hen, one "easter egger hen (fullsized) and one Barred Rock hen (full sized). We lost one to a neighbors dog recently and were considering adding one more bantam. Is five too many for that size coop?

 

[RoostersCrow HensDeliver!]

I think you might be able to get away with 5 if some are banties. My girls have about 4 square feet per bird inside the coop and they do just fine.

 

[Ladyblackswan]

I was using the 4 square foot rule when we built it....figuring 5x5 gave us 25 square feet, so we were thinking 5 to 6 chickens, leaning towards five....we live in rural Maine, so I want to have enough so they can keep warm. Most folks up here advise strongly against heating the coop because we loose power so often, so I'd like enough chickens to allow for them to 'snuggle up" on the roost and deep bedding.

 

[RoostersCrow HensDeliver!]

I don't heat my coop either. A thick bedding of straw and a little scratch grain will keep them warm and occupied all day long.

Sounds like you planned it out very well. Keep us updated with pictures!

 

[Ladyblackswan]

I have no idea what "scratch grain" is,lol. Do they like that? Is it a chicken treat? We feed ours layer mash and vegetable scraps....they love tomatoes!

 

[RoostersCrow HensDeliver!]

Oh scratch grain is just grains and seeds that you throw on the ground for them "scratch" and eat. I use it to stir up the bedding inside the coop so it doesn't get packed down. It usually is cracked corn, oats, wheat, sorghum, seeds of various grass plants like you'd find in wild bird seed. My girls LOVE it but it is only a small treat and used as an incentive to scratch in the dirt/grass for bugs and other goodies. I would think most feed stores and co-ops would carry it. Regular bird seed would work too, but its way more expensive.