We are new...

[nwbfrmrgrlz]

We are new to the farming/ chicken ordeals. We recently purchased 7.5 acres that includes a 3 (or 4) bay horse stable can anyone tell me if horse stables can be revamped into a chicken coop? if so how much sunlight do chicks need and do they need a seperate laying area from a run?
Thanks for any info all will be helpful,
nwbfrmrgrlz
(newbie farmer girls)

 

[4H kids and mom]

Welcome!

Chickens are very easy to house, because nearly anything can become a lovely and well functioning coop! A couple horse stables will work perfectly! I turned the back end of my garage into a coop, so you can do it too!

As far as sunlight, layers need 14 hours to be in peak lay. This can be any combination of natural and artificial light. If the stables dont have windows, you will want to add at least one or two, or they will have no air flow and become too hot in the summer, and cause respitory issues in the chickens. If you arent a handy type person, you can easily add a window by cutting a good size square out of the wall, staple gunning chicken wire over it, and attaching the cut out piece to the opposite side with a couple hinges and a latch.

For laying, chickens do best with a more quiet and slightly darkened area for the nestboxes. In the wild, chickens would lay their eggs in the hollows of trees, or under brush where they are well hidden and feel secure. We put the nestboxes (we made covered ones) in the coop, and attached a seperate larger run area to the coop that they have access to chose wether or not they want to go in or stay out.

I hope this helps! If not, I'm sure others will chime in and you will find the answers you seek here!

 

[nwbfrmrgrlz]

Thank you,
I have 3 daughters and we decided to have some chickens so I will be repairing the stables very soon !
Thanks again.

 

[mudhen]

HI! And welcome to BYC!

You've come to the right place! I agree with 4H kids and mom.
And if you get a chance, take a peek at the Home page for all sorts of info on raising chickens.
Looking forward to updates!
Good luck, nwbfrmrgrlz !

 

[Chicken_Addict]

WELCOME TO BYC!!!


i just as in yesterday turned one of my horse stalls into a coop...just check it throughly for lil holes and ways for them to fly out lmao i say this from experience

have had to catch the lil boogers like 5 times now!!!! goodluck to you all!!

 

[AccidentalFarm]

Welcome to the forums!

 

[bayouchica]

Hi there & welcome to BYC

Miriam