Where to build

[Mraya]

I don't let my dogs out without me. We live right off of a dangerous highway. We've lost several dogs to that road over the years. So there goes that idea.

I have a fenced yard.

 

[Newfarmer36]

I don't mind snakes unless they eat eggs or birds. Great mouse and rat killers! King snakes eat other snakes, but they killed 4 of my partly grown guinea keets. I caught them and relocated.

I can't deal with them! More power to ya!!

 

[CapricornFarm]

I don't let my dogs out without me. We live right off of a dangerous highway. We've lost several dogs to that road over the years. So there goes that idea.

Fence in a yard around the chickens. Put dogs in yard.no losses to cars.

 

[Mraya]

I have a fenced yard.

Since you live close to a highway will you free range?

 

[Newfarmer36]

I have a fenced yard.

I don't anymore. My previous dog HATED being in a fence. I still don't know how he did it but he got out every single time he was put in it. So we took it down.

 

[CapricornFarm]

I can't deal with them! More power to ya!!

Why not? I am a granny! If i can do it, you can do it. I do not handle poisonous snakes. Those minnow traps make good snake traps

 

[Newfarmer36]

Why not? I am a granny! If i can do it, you can do it. I do not handle poisonous snakes. Those minnow traps make good snake traps

No no no no... lol!!! They give me the wibby jibbies!!

 

[Mraya]

I don't anymore. My previous dog HATED being in a fence. I still don't know how he did it but he got out every single time he was put in it. So we took it down.

What if you trained the dog to guard the chicken?

 

[dunnmom]

Since you are in LA, and you get humid, hot weather, I'd go ahead and put 'em under the shade trees. If you free range, they can go find their sunshine when they need it. Just my opinion.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My main criteria on where to put a coop/run has been covered. Put it where the water drains away from it, not toward it. Or even worse, where water stands. A wet coop/run is an unhealthy coop/run and will stink. A dry one makes your life a lot easier.

My next main criteria is to make it convenient to you. Where are you storing the feed? Where do you get the water? Will you be carrying a bag of feed from your vehicle to where it is stored? If you are going to run electricity to it, where is a good spot for that? Are you building from scratch or will you convert an existing building or build next to an outbuilding? Will you be taking poop or bedding to a compost pile, how convenient is that? Will you be feeding them excess from a garden, is that convenient? When it rains can you walk to the coop without putting on rubber boots?

I would not expect you to have really steep hills in Monroe but maybe. The steeper the hill the more prone to erosion you are. You might want to use swales or berms above it to divert rainwater away from it. If it is very steep the chickens will probably convert it to bare dirt and scratch a lot of it downhill. Or if you use bedding in the run it will get scratched downhill. On a gentle slope this is not a big deal but if it is pretty steep you might want to think about what you will do.

In your summers shade will be very important. That can be trees or you can build your coop/run in a way that shade is provided.

Do you want it visible from the road or not? For some people that might be important, depending on the neighborhood.

Just a few things to think about. Good luck with it.