wooded acres
Chirping
We're building out first chicken coop and after deciding on a design my husband keeps changing his mind... We had originally planned on a 12x6 shelter; a 24sq ft raised coop with attached run enclosed in hardware cloth with a metal roof. Now he's convinced the run area should be totally enclosed with wood and have shutters/windows to allow for circulation during the warm months but keep the chickens warm during our harsh winters... I feel like this is overkill and it's just kind of making a huge coop. We get a lot of snow and wind so he's worried they'll be sitting in the tiny coop all day in the winter, fearing the run will fill with snow and be too exposed to the elements. I plan to let the chickens free range during the day as long as I'm home to keep an eye on things. I made sure to pick cold hardy breeds so my thinking is they'll brave the winter if they want to come out and play. I suggested maybe having removable side "walls" that could be installed in the wintertime but the hubby feels that's not weatherproof enough. Any advice would be appreciated.