what do you love/hate about your coop?

[puebloyoga]

I'm a newbie and am considering coops for my 6 chicks. I'm in grad school so probably won't have time to do much building - perhaps part of the run.

Anything you would do differently with your coop design - anything you dislike about your coop/wish were different?

What about special features you love in your coop? What you couldn't do without?

-New Chick Mama in Northern CA

 

[jenni22776rn]

I just got done with our coop..one thing I could not live without is the nesting boxes that have the opening on top..so much easier to open the top and reach in..no more climbing in and over to get the eggs!! I also love the large open door on the side for easy cleaning!!

The back of the coop is where the nexting boxes are..does not take away any of their room in the coop!
Good luck and there are many diffrent options for coops...I have seen so many on here that I drool over!!

 

[Kaitie09]

Mine would be bigger, and I would have painted it before the chickens were in it, not a year after. I would have made an additional space inside the coop for a broody or chicks, and add a little outdoor run to that. I would have added a rectangular cutout that was flush with the ground and a wooden flap so when I cleaned my coop, I could just sweep it through there and then lock it back up. I would have added a separate area in the coop that would be used for food and water, and nothing else (no shavings either). I think I would add the roll-out nesting boxes, so that I did not get so many smashed eggs. I would also make the nesting boxes outside the coop so they could be opened from the top. I would made the run bigger, completely covered in hardware cloth, and it would have a playground in it. I would make roosts all along the walls, and plant some bushes it in. I would have added gravel or sand to it, instead of dirt. I would have added an underground drainage system because the water drains right through the run. I would have added real electricity, not just and extension cord, and I would have added water.

I would have done a lot of things...

 

[georgiagail]

I love our first coop. I wish the chickens didn't poop in it.

 

[DazeGoneBy]

 

[NCchicken]

I love how we have added on so many times

that we now have two coops with two runs that are connected but can be separated by just closing a door. That way there is a place for two different sizes/ages of chickens to grow up before everyone can be together. I hate that our small original coop door is so narrow that I can not fit my shoulders in it when cleaning it out. It's tiny. I love how my DH made it so there is electricity in the coop...awesome for a heat lamp in the winter and a fan in the summer. I love how our run floor is sand..that is a MUST. We had little pebbles before and it was awful...sand is the way to go for the run floor. Our coop floors are hay. I clean it out about every 2 weeks. I just rake it up and put it in a garbage bag. I agree with pp, paint the inside of the coop. We used white barn and fence paint from Lowe's. I wish that we used hardwire cloth instead of chicken wire. Rats fit nicely through chicken wire

.

 

[hennyannie]

I too rushed to get the hens in and wish I would have painted the inside.
Also I wish I would have built roost with pans for easy cleaning up.
Also I wish they had their own door and I didn't have to share with them.

 

[SadieSue]

Love my solar powered automatic door so they can go out into the run on their own first thing in the morning. Love that my coop is raised 2 feet off the ground so I can clean it easily and they have additional room underneath so the run is a full 8X12. I would change how far the roosts are from the wall. I don't understand how they still poop on the wall behind the roosts, unless they are projectile pooping. I do like my poop board with sand boxes underneath so I can just scoop the poop and compost. I like that the run is fully roofed so it's always dry underneath. Overall pretty happy with the coop and run, but it was months of researching on BYC and planning that made it so. I've learned so much here!

 

[TheUrbanFarm&Garden]

I'd add a sand box (box of sand) for them to bathe in rather than the dirt. Planning on doing this soon!

 

[Chick Norris]

Looove the automatic door.

Wish we had more storage space for food and bedding.