To Build Or Not To Build

[ThaatGurl]

Hi Everyone!

New chicken momma here to 6 baby girls, all different breeds. In a perfect world, I'd like to build my own coop but I don't really know what chickens need/want. Should I start off with a prefab and go from there? Or jump in head-first to designing my own? No one really wants to waste time or money on something that isn't going to work. All advice is welcome!

Thanks

 

[ShellyBear]

Study first on coops and then from their try new ideas and sea what fits best. Or you could have an idea and get it down on some paper and look at what you need how much it will cost. If you want a nice coop build it without cutting corners. You could also look at some blue print that people have already done and try those. Good luck!

 

[ThaatGurl]

I've looked A LOT

at many different styles and a couple stand out to me. I jotted down a rough design a few months back, when I was sure I only wanted 3 hens... LOL! Now that they're here and there's 6 of them, my original design would have to add some feet. Not sure it would be any cheaper to build that design versus just buying one.

 

[ChickenMammX4]

Welcome to BYC!

There are many great ideas in the "COOPS" section. See it in the top bar of this page?

The pre-fab coops are cheaply made and usually don't comfortably house the number of chickens advertised. It's best to build your own or contract someone to build it to your specs.

Edited to add: FWIW, I have 6 chickens, the coop is 8' x 18' (8' x 9' is used by the chickens, the other half is storage). The attached run is 8' x 16'.

 

[ThaatGurl]

Thanks for the advice. Went ahead with building. Since the girls free range the backyard during the day, i designed a little 4x6 house just for sleeping. They seem to have plenty of room and return to it every evening without issue. That means they like it, right?