Tree house chicken coop ideas ? And can chickens learn to use?

[Alycea]

Hello all

I have taken care of chickens in the past, and they were housed in a standard chicken house with run and also had run of the garden during the day. One of the chickens (all black, but don't know the breed) used to like to roost in nearby trees, particularly if she felt threatened is some way. I have read that chickens will naturally roost in trees when in the wild or if given the opportunity, though I am not sure if this is true of all breeds. This has given me some ideas.

We have built a very very large secret garden duck enclosure in a corner of our walled garden (here in France). There is a 2.5 meter/8 foot chicken wire fence all around and bird netting over the top. Multiple trees grow up and cluster within the enclosure to provide shade and shelter throughout the year.

We have ducks already living in it, for 2.5 years now. The plan is to introduce chickens early this next year; two to three depending on size. Ideally, I would like to build a tree house chicken coop. Why? So the ducks can't/won't access, and there is more space available in the trees than for a free standing coop.

The floor would be about eye height (so about 1.65 m / 5 1/2 feet) with one wall lifting up to access and clean, as well as two entryways. There would be a ramp that winds its way up as well as branches a chicken can use to hop up if preferred. It would not necessarily hold nesting boxes (though it could). It's really planned as a night time sheltered.

We are looking at ideally re-homing battery chickens. Or if not, bringing in bantam chickens, possibly different breeds.

So my questions are:

Has anyone built a chicken tree house coop before that they can give tips, recommendations and things to avoid?

Are there only certain breeds that more naturally will roost or go up in to trees, particularly bantams?

Can a chicken, especially an ex battery chicken, learn to climb up into a tree coop, or at least a high up coop?

Thank you for your responses ahead of time.

 

[DobieLover]

Hello all

I have taken care of chickens in the past, and they were housed in a standard chicken house with run and also had run of the garden during the day. One of the chickens (all black, but don't know the breed) used to like to roost in nearby trees, particularly if she felt threatened is some way. I have read that chickens will naturally roost in trees when in the wild or if given the opportunity, though I am not sure if this is true of all breeds. This has given me some ideas.

We have built a very very large secret garden duck enclosure in a corner of our walled garden (here in France). There is a 2.5 meter/8 foot chicken wire fence all around and bird netting over the top. Multiple trees grow up and cluster within the enclosure to provide shade and shelter throughout the year.

We have ducks already living in it, for 2.5 years now. The plan is to introduce chickens early this next year; two to three depending on size. Ideally, I would like to build a tree house chicken coop. Why? So the ducks can't/won't access, and there is more space available in the trees than for a free standing coop.

The floor would be about eye height (so about 1.65 m / 5 1/2 feet) with one wall lifting up to access and clean, as well as two entryways. There would be a ramp that winds its way up as well as branches a chicken can use to hop up if preferred. It would not necessarily hold nesting boxes (though it could). It's really planned as a night time sheltered.

We are looking at ideally re-homing battery chickens. Or if not, bringing in bantam chickens, possibly different breeds.

So my questions are:

Has anyone built a chicken tree house coop before that they can give tips, recommendations and things to avoid?

Are there only certain breeds that more naturally will roost or go up in to trees, particularly bantams?

Can a chicken, especially an ex battery chicken, learn to climb up into a tree coop, or at least a high up coop?

Thank you for your responses ahead of time.

I would reconsider this idea.
You need to think about how you will access chickens from the roosts when needed.
How will you clean the coop? An eye height floor will not be at all easy to clean.
Ex-batts are typically traumatized birds when you first get them and they will have trouble with a ramp let alone flying up branches to get in.
Birds don't usually try to fly from branch to branch to get where they want to go. They will try a direct approach or will use a ramp to get up to the roosts.
Think about how hard it would be to clean and treat the coop for red mites should the coop/flock become infected with them.
The concept sounds lovely but the reality, I'm afraid, will be unpleasant at best to work with for the care taker.

 

[Alycea]

I would reconsider this idea.
You need to think about how you will access chickens from the roosts when needed.
How will you clean the coop? An eye height floor will not be at all easy to clean.
Ex-batts are typically traumatized birds when you first get them and they will have trouble with a ramp let alone flying up branches to get in.
Birds don't usually try to fly from branch to branch to get where they want to go. They will try a direct approach or will use a ramp to get up to the roosts.
Think about how hard it would be to clean and treat the coop for red mites should the coop/flock become infected with them.
The concept sounds lovely but the reality, I'm afraid, will be unpleasant at best to work with for the care taker.

Thanks for the thoughts. The coop plan is the easy bit, including designed for easy cleaning, which I will do. So that part I am not worried about. I take on board your comments about ex-batts. I have not dealt with them before, so hence it may not be possible to have them at this stage.

 

[Shadrach]

It does seem to be a wonderful idea but as DobieLover points out there are practicle aspects that make such a scheme very difficult to maintain.
I have bantams here and they would happily roost in the trees as will some of the cross breeds.
One of the advantages of having chickens roosting in trees is the health problems associated with keeping them in coops is avoided. People do have tree roosting chicken flocks. Here where I live it's quite common. The usual objection to tree roosting is predation, which is what I assume the idea of tree houses/coops is supposed to mitigate.
I've tried a platform with two walls in a tree like half open box with a lid, just out of curiosity to see the chickens showed any sign of wanting to use it. They didn't.
The best alternative I've seen was a bit like what you have now, but on a larger scale.
The essential thing for such a scheme is to have a very secure fence. Chicken wire won't do. You need some kind of weldmesh fence, with an anti dig skirt, preferably 3 metres, or more high. Then you need this fence to surround a plot with established trees and shrubs. The established trees are used to help support a nylon net that covers the run. This involves some adjustment of tree height and annual tree trimming.
The idea is to provide a large high security run with no coops. It has been done and apparently works very well with the right breeds.
The right breeds are the next problem. Most of the heavyweight so called dual purpose chickens are unlikely to be interested in tree roosting. Some just don't know how any more and for others the jump into the trees is just not physically possible. Some type of ladder system might overcome this.
The important point is the run needs to be as secure as any coop you are likely to build. It is possible but it's expensive.

 

[Alycea]

It does seem to be a wonderful idea but as DobieLover points out there are practicle aspects that make such a scheme very difficult to maintain.
I have bantams here and they would happily roost in the trees as will some of the cross breeds.
One of the advantages of having chickens roosting in trees is the health problems associated with keeping them in coops is avoided. People do have tree roosting chicken flocks. Here where I live it's quite common. The usual objection to tree roosting is predation, which is what I assume the idea of tree houses/coops is supposed to mitigate.
I've tried a platform with two walls in a tree like half open box with a lid, just out of curiosity to see the chickens showed any sign of wanting to use it. They didn't.
The best alternative I've seen was a bit like what you have now, but on a larger scale.
The essential thing for such a scheme is to have a very secure fence. Chicken wire won't do. You need some kind of weldmesh fence, with an anti dig skirt, preferably 3 metres, or more high. Then you need this fence to surround a plot with established trees and shrubs. The established trees are used to help support a nylon net that covers the run. This involves some adjustment of tree height and annual tree trimming.
The idea is to provide a large high security run with no coops. It has been done and apparently works very well with the right breeds.
The right breeds are the next problem. Most of the heavyweight so called dual purpose chickens are unlikely to be interested in tree roosting. Some just don't know how any more and for others the jump into the trees is just not physically possible. Some type of ladder system might overcome this.
The important point is the run needs to be as secure as any coop you are likely to build. It is possible but it's expensive.

Thanks Shadrach.
Yes, we already have a secure enclosure as you outline. Essentially the chickens could roost where they like. I would like to provide some form of shelter should they wish, and particularly one that is not accessible by the ducks, who can fly and hop up on to things, but don't roost in the trees as they are not that agile. And they would go up on to a free standing coop.
I am assuming the chickens would spend most times simply roosting in the trees at night, but would like to provide a shelter for rain or against wind, should they wish it. Of course they could also oust a duck or two from the ground level shelters if they wished It may just have to be a wait and see what they prefer, depending on what we get.

 

[Ridgerunner]

The best I can tell your weather isn't that extreme. I could not find your record lows but it appears a normal winter maximum low is around freezing, maybe 30* F (-1 C). I've seen dual purpose chickens sleep in trees in temperatures around -10 F (-23 C). Those chickens were not on a bare tree branch overlooking a cliff and squawking defiantly into the teeth of a blizzard. Those trees were in a sheltered valley and were kind of in a thicket, plus the chickens could move around to get out of a strong wind. But you are not talking about chickens sleeping out in the open in a bare tree. You are talking about building a shelter up there that would as minimum protect them from wind. I don't see any weather issues. They are just in an elevated coop. Look under the "Articles" tab at the top of this page for an elevated coop design. You are just building it a couple of feet higher than normal.

From a chicken aspect I don't see the problems. My dual purpose chickens easily fly up to my 5' high roosts, they could easily go higher if they wished. You can provide a ramp or intermediate steps if you wish. The trick will be making them want to roost up there, just like you need to get them to roost in a ground level coop or any other elevated coop. If you have abnormally huge chickens like Jersey Giants or maybe even Brahmas you might have issues. If you feed them such a rich diet that they get huge for their breed you might have issues. If you get birds that cant fly like Silkies they won't fly up there. But practically any normal dual purpose chicken or bantam should have no problems flying up 1.65 meters.

The way I train mine to sleep in a coop is to lock them in there at night until they learn to go in on their own. Sometimes mine learn after just one time locking them in there. I've had to consistently put them in for three weeks before the last ones figured it out. My broods are typically in the 20 chicken range, not your two or three.

I suggest a minimum of three. Chickens are social animals and can get lonely by themselves. If you have three and you lose one they still have company.

One place I strongly agree, your comfort and convenience is of utmost importance. Cleaning is only a part of that. You need to be able to safely access every part of that shelter. If they are going to be locked in there against predators you need a nest in there as they often lay first thing in the morning.

My understanding is that your goal is to provide a place for the chickens to sleep that the ducks won't use. I think you are overthinking it and making it too complicated. You already have the ducks. Where are they sleeping? Why would they not continue sleeping there? Build a shelter/coop for your chickens. Train them to sleep there. Hand it from a tree limb if you wish, just make it convenient to you.

 

[Alycea]

Thank you Ridgerunner for your response. Very in-depth.
I did not know that about Silkies, and as they were a breed I was considering that must be added into the mix.
And a very good point about having 3. Although they will have the duck flock about them, I know this is not the same thing.
And superb training tips. Thank you. The chickens we looked after before were already trained to go in on their own, so good to know if our new ones aren't.
Our (pet) ducks have various shelters in the enclosure. They shift around a lot, choosing different spots at different times of day or night, so not dedicated to the chickens - unless the chickens choose it. The idea is to provide options and utilise all of the space in the enclosure, including vertically. But ultimately if they don't wish or can't fly up (and ditto a ramp) we will just have to provide something else.

 

[Chickenman MAN]

Hello all

I have taken care of chickens in the past, and they were housed in a standard chicken house with run and also had run of the garden during the day. One of the chickens (all black, but don't know the breed) used to like to roost in nearby trees, particularly if she felt threatened is some way. I have read that chickens will naturally roost in trees when in the wild or if given the opportunity, though I am not sure if this is true of all breeds. This has given me some ideas.

We have built a very very large secret garden duck enclosure in a corner of our walled garden (here in France). There is a 2.5 meter/8 foot chicken wire fence all around and bird netting over the top. Multiple trees grow up and cluster within the enclosure to provide shade and shelter throughout the year.

We have ducks already living in it, for 2.5 years now. The plan is to introduce chickens early this next year; two to three depending on size. Ideally, I would like to build a tree house chicken coop. Why? So the ducks can't/won't access, and there is more space available in the trees than for a free standing coop.

The floor would be about eye height (so about 1.65 m / 5 1/2 feet) with one wall lifting up to access and clean, as well as two entryways. There would be a ramp that winds its way up as well as branches a chicken can use to hop up if preferred. It would not necessarily hold nesting boxes (though it could). It's really planned as a night time sheltered.

We are looking at ideally re-homing battery chickens. Or if not, bringing in bantam chickens, possibly different breeds.

So my questions are:

Has anyone built a chicken tree house coop before that they can give tips, recommendations and things to avoid?

Are there only certain breeds that more naturally will roost or go up in to trees, particularly bantams?

Can a chicken, especially an ex battery chicken, learn to climb up into a tree coop, or at least a high up coop?

Thank you for your responses ahead of time.

I've got ex-bats. Don't rely on them to do anything like jumping or perching or roosting ect. I have had them for two months and in this time most 'normal' chickens would've escaped my run, and, would enjoy using the perch I made for them. In my experience ex bats prefer being on the ground and aren't going to fly unless they have too, or perch unless they are sleeping. Also, IDK about others, but my ex bats HATE it soooo much if I put them in the coop during the day. Even if the door is open! Not only that, but even if it is raining or windy they shelter under a box but won't go in unless they are laying an egg! I wouldn't put it in the trees. Harder for you and the chooks (particularly cleaning and egg collecting). Also, I've never had ducks, but I wouldn't think that it'd matter that much if the ducks went in the coop. They've learnt where they sleep and I doubt they would break that habit. The chooks will spend most of their time outside anyway. If you need more advice on ex bats be sure to ask!

 

[Alycea]

I've got ex-bats. Don't rely on them to do anything like jumping or perching or roosting ect. I have had them for two months and in this time most 'normal' chickens would've escaped my run, and, would enjoy using the perch I made for them. In my experience ex bats prefer being on the ground and aren't going to fly unless they have too, or perch unless they are sleeping. Also, IDK about others, but my ex bats HATE it soooo much if I put them in the coop during the day. Even if the door is open! Not only that, but even if it is raining or windy they shelter under a box but won't go in unless they are laying an egg! I wouldn't put it in the trees. Harder for you and the chooks (particularly cleaning and egg collecting). Also, I've never had ducks, but I wouldn't think that it'd matter that much if the ducks went in the coop. They've learnt where they sleep and I doubt they would break that habit. The chooks will spend most of their time outside anyway. If you need more advice on ex bats be sure to ask!

Thank you ChickenMan Man.
Good to know. As the enclosure is large and open air (and secure) the chickens will not have to go inside anything if they do not wish to. So maybe it would be a nice new home for ex-batts? If I go with them, I am starting to think having a tree shelter, even if not too high might not be used by them. But I can always put it in and see.
What is your thoughts on mixing ex-batts and non-batts?

 

[Chickenman MAN]

Thank you ChickenMan Man.
Good to know. As the enclosure is large and open air (and secure) the chickens will not have to go inside anything if they do not wish to. So maybe it would be a nice new home for ex-batts? If I go with them, I am starting to think having a tree shelter, even if not too high might not be used by them. But I can always put it in and see.
What is your thoughts on mixing ex-batts and non-batts?

I've never mixed ex-batts with non-batts, because I haven't wanted or needed to! However, if I were doing so I'd wait until the batts are fully feathered. Then, I'd put them in the same run, divided in half with fencing so they can see each other. Do this for about two weeks or so and then remove the fencing and observe.