Nesting in Style
In the age-old question of which comes first, the chicken or the egg, we'd like to present another option—the chicken coop! In our case, the chicken coop came first, then the chickens, and finally the eggs. We already had a barn, so we outfitted a section of it to be the perfect dwelling place for our flock—a Poultry Paradise!
Build Your Own Backyard Chicken Coop
We began in early March of 2007 to construct our chicken coop. Nate converted what was mainly a storage area inside the barn into a livable space for the 25 or so chickens that were due to arrive in May. It's recommended that each adult chicken get about a square foot of living space, at the minimum. The room we made gives them much more than that. Especially when you factor in that they spend most of their time on perches and not clustered on the ground. Our chickens also have access to an outdoor area that provides more extra space for them to enjoy.
To create the coop, Nate began by putting a up a divider in the center of the barn. (We use the other side to house our gardening tools.) Then he knocked out some of block in the wall to create an opening for the chickens to go in and out.
The original storage space
Nate begins to construct the wall divider
He worked in the snow to have it ready in time
The bottom of the new wall is solid, while the top allows ventilation
Add Outdoor Access
The next step of the project was to construct a safe outdoor space for the chickens. We wanted to let them have access to the outdoors without giving them a complete run of the whole backyard. So Nate put in a fence with chicken wire on the sides and bird netting above (to protect from hawks). The area is mostly shaded during the day, which is important because chickens can't sweat to keep themselves cool.
During the day we can open the gate and let them free-roam in the yard. At night when they go to bed (which they do on their own) we close the gate, protecting them from predators like fox. On days when the weather is bad or we're on vacation, we keep the gate closed.
The netting on top also keep the chickens from flying out.
Inside view of the chicken coop when the birds were two months old.
Provide a Nest for Laying Eggs
Chickens like to have a little privacy when they lay their eggs. They also look for a soft, clean area. You can use a cardboard box, but we wanted something sturdier. We decided to build it off the ground to keep it more sanitary and because the chickens feel more secure when they're up high. Since we have quite a few hens we made three seperate boxes, but in hindsight we probably could have used a fourth. Sometimes they have to double-up in one box.
We recycled some wood from an old entertainment unit to fashion the nesting boxes.
Nate added a perch to aid the chickens in hopping up into the boxes. Plus, they use it as a waiting deck.
An bird's-eye view of the new coop.
Our full-grown hens using the nests to lay their eggs
The Finishing Touches
After a few weeks, it became evident that the chickens loved their small perch. So Nate built another short one a few feet higher, not anticipating its sudden popularity. Every night the chickens squeezed onto it, while the losers had to settle for the lower one. Some flew up into the window box and slept there. So Nate extended the high perch the whole length of the coop, thereby making enough room for all the chickens. Although some still sleep in the window, even in winter.
The chickens love to perch, as we soon learned.
A high perch makes a happy chicken.
Last updated 5/08 | The Paine Family © 2008 All Rights Reserved