Very large chicken tractor

[WGB]

Hi all, a friend and I want to get into meat birds.
One reason is to supplement my pasture which is very low in all nutrients.
The other is to sell at farmers market, we have the feed, transport, butchering, etc. worked out.
Does anyone have ideas on a large chicken tractor design? Good for 100 birds.
We can literally move it with a tractor.
Thanks

 

[patandchickens]

Cruise the "Meat Birds Etc" section of BYC for a bunch of peoples' designs; also google Joel Salatin or buy one of his books, and look at Andy Lee's "Chicken Tractor" book, which are both aimed at the sort of thing you're talking about.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[tomdeggeater]

For a less expensive way out, you might check around for used, large packing crates. The type that go on ship or plane. Either the wooden type, (if still made) or even metal or plastic.
Tom

 

[Thomas423]

I saw a tractor yesterday which was a large coop built on a large farm (hay) wagon. It sat in the middle of a field with wire fencing around it. Don't know how many chickens but there were alot.

One note though.....
We saw this coop/wagon while traveling down a road in AM and the chickens were out running about. By noonish when we traveled back the sun was blazing and it was very hot. The chickens all went under the wagon but it looked crowded and still very hot. I felt sorry for the chickens not having any real shade.

 

[WGB]

Thanks, anyone have any of the Poly Phase Farms books?

 

[briana1975]

Hoop house?

 

[tomdeggeater]

An old camping trailer or RV?
Tom

 

[buttonsamy]

My neighbor built some tractors like this, they are about 2 ft high, have feeding boxes along the edge, a metal roof down the middle for shade and hardware cloth around the entire structure except on the bottom, obviously. Plenty of room for 100 birds, since it is about 25x25=400sqft.

I cannot take pictures right now since they are piled with snow, but as soon as spring comes along, I will post a picture of them! Really simple, short, structures using some 2x4's, metal roofing and hardware cloth. I have not seen a picture of another tractor like this online...still looking.
Hope that helps a little?
Amy