It's not hard but it's not easy either. Aggravating is the word that comes to mind. I have only had to do it a couple times but...aggravating. They migrate back to the coop to roost right at sunset. They kind of mosey in, get their last drink and then scuffle for the prime roosting spots. In the summer I set up a low roost outside as some, if not all, like to roost outside when it's warm. The run we have attached to the coop and chicken yard is 20'x60' and goes into the woods so it provides plenty of shade during summer when we don't let them free range.
Bruce...thanks for the suggestion. I didn't even know what a chicken tractor was until I googled it. I've included an aerial view of my home (circled in yellow). As you can see, I don't think it would be out of line to have a few chickens in MY yard for a neighborhood such as mine. Looking for suggestions though. Do you think I could let the chickens run around in the fence I built last summer? Its plenty big but how do I keep them from escaping, clip their wings or is that ethical? They would definitely be free range but finding eggs might be a chore. The red spots on the map near my shed is a nice little spot that I could build a more permanent coop (like pictured below). Would this be a good idea or would the tractor be the way to go? I also own into the woods behind my house. Would it be good to build a coop with a chicken wired run in the woods? Would I have to worry about snakes and such more there than having it in my yard? Tony...hope you don't mind all my questions in your thread.
Bruce...I just looked back in this thread and saw your tractor. Like the wheel jack idea. With that being said, I'm not entirely sold on the tractor deal. Don't know if it's something I want to be constantly moving around.
Donnie, I love the input .. I am a newbie with it all too. In your situation, I think you should be fine! as far as them escaping, my brother has a set-up lkinda like you do and he did have a few hens cross the fence ... wing clipping worked for him and making sure there was nothing leaning against the fence for them to jump up on on their way out :D They always come back, but he had a few neighbors unappreciative of his chickens eating their plants ... lol ... so the 3 cornish he had kept getting out even with their wings clipped ... so he ate them :D
The only other problem with my fence idea is a dog named Molly. That is her space when the wife and I both aren't home. I don't know how she'll take to chickens. Probably run from them. We had chickens when I was little so I have a LITTLE bit of experience but it was more of a chore than a "thrill." Now I'm interested. Funny story, my brother and I would hold our own private cock fights. We were bad kids. This will sound silly but I think I might feel bad to keep chickens cooped up in a tiny place all the time. Yet on the other hand, that is their purpose in life though, right?
2-4 chickens don't need alot of space ... and you having them in a coop is sure alot better than the chickens have from where the store eggs come from ....
This kinda makes the point ... Matt, I know I am taking a chance by showing a PETA lover this .... but I gotta go balls to the wall to make my point :D
LOL...what the hell? I'll keep my dang chickens in milkcrates if I have to....and they'll like it. And I can't help if I don't want to hurt a chickens feelings.
I'm still undecided on the tractor vs stationary. I like the tractor for the new pecking area aspect, but for the "look" of our property, I'll likely go with the stationary. Either way, in a few more weeks, if winter doesn't show I'll start construction on mine.
Please post pics ... as will I .... do you have an idea of how you will do your coop? Talk to the neighbor ... if he doesn't do anything about it, I have some good links on butchering chickens
I'm still undecided on the tractor vs stationary. I like the tractor for the new pecking area aspect, but for the "look" of our property, I'll likely go with the stationary. Either way, in a few more weeks, if winter doesn't show I'll start construction on mine.
I much prefer a stationary coop to a tractor for laying hens. We use the tractor specifically for broilers. They only live 6-8 weeks and you want to keep them off of their poop as the ammonia will cause blisters on their breast and legs. It also fertilizes a much larger area. We did keep the new laying hens in it with some broilers and they stayed in it until we butchered all of the broilers and old layers. Then we introduced them to the coop and chicken yard. We had to physically put them in the coop the first couple nights but then they got the idea and started roosting in there on their own. By the time they started laying (4-5 months old) they used the nest boxes too. I would still always have some kind of tractor now that I have used one extensively. It is great for broilers and also for transitioning flocks. I can also use it to segregate chickens if I wanted to breed a specific rooster hen combination or segregate sick chicken(s). Even if you just have a smallish one, say 4'x4', that's big enough to hold 4-6 chickens for a long period if need be and even more for shorter time frames.
Yep...thanks Bruce and everyone else. I surprisingly got the go ahead from the wife to get a few hens. I'm just glad I'll get to build something again. This may just be the must extravagant chicken coop you guys have ever seen. Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk
Guys ... check this out .. the layout of this coop is exactly how I am doing mine .. and check out the [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sweet PDZ with the poop shelves ... maybe they can teach an old dog (bruce) a new trick?? :D[/FONT] http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/621363/poop-board-convert-warning-graphic-gross-poop-pictures
If Bruc ecould hammer two boards together without screwing up they probably could LMAO. That coop looks great! My coop looks like a chicken shack LOL. I'll get some pics of it. we just use a lot of straw to cover the floor. They poop on that, we fork it out and into the mulch pile. Once it mulches a bit, straw and poop goes into the garden. Be forewarned, chickens poop constantly, even in their sleep. There is lots of chicken poop. It will be great for your wife's flowers, Tony. Just mulch it for a while before using it. It can be real "hot" when its fresh.
Your coops are looking good, im obviously getting to this thread late...but we have between 65 and 80 thousand chickens. I know not exactly what you guys are talking about here.
