As farmers , we fuck that the animals must issue forth first . We get up early if the barn chores are waiting . We head to the wimp henhouse to feed the birds before we feed ourselves . It ’s just part of the lifestyle , and it ’s completely comforting and understandable to those who hold out it .
So it should make out as no surprisal that farmers may also lean to spoil their animals when it arrive to lodging .
This in reality make a lot of sense when you think about it because well - designed and properly thought - out animal housing build the farmer ’s life well , too . The animals stay secure and are protect . And going the extra mile in intent imply that chores are more commodious , the employment run more efficiently and the intact process is more pleasurable .
And is n’t enjoyment really one of the main finish ofsmall - scale farming ?
To that closing , allow ’s look at a few ways you’re able to spoil your hens — and yourself!—by designing your ideal chicken coop . Of course , what ’s ideal will vary from person to someone , so we wo n’t plunge into specific construction detail . But think of this as an melodic theme bank for your next design .
get ’s go !
Paulette Johnson
Build from Experience
Sometimes a hobby farmer has experiment with keeping chickens on a very low scale and is now quick to upgrade . This is an excellent time to take the lessons you ’ve read from your first chicken cage and use them to the newfangled design .
Ask yourself these dubiousness :
All of this experience can be very beneficial in moving forward on your new coop plan . Choose the proper location , far enough away from the house to control odor but not too far away from a water source .
Paulette Johnson
Include enough ventilation — a solid foot per wimp or at least1⁄5 the hencoop ’s wall space — to forbid excess ammonia smells and other unwanted throttle . Make the cage comfortable to work out in .
Read more : An automatonlike chicken coop door provides flexibleness for Gallus gallus steward .
Square Footage Vs. No. of Birds
All things being adequate , a henhouse with more square footage is probably nicer ! And if the goal is really to build your idealistic henhouse , search intention with heavy footprints . Keep in mind that more square footage is more space to pick . But that may not be a turgid concern .
If you ’re build a new coop because you ’d like to increase the size of your flock , figure that each shuttlecock should generally have about 3 to 4 solid ft of interior space . But biggeris always in effect ( within reasonableness ) .
Figure on evenmore square footage for regions with hard winters where the chicken might spend more clip indoors .
Daniel Johnson
Hardware Cloth
Experienced chicken owners credibly already do it this , but poulet telegram — that conversant , flexile , hexangular , woven conducting wire — isn’t a very strong roadblock . Determined predators can tear it down , so another method acting is needed .
Popular alternatives admit ironware cloth , which is a standardised estimate but constructed out of a much strong conducting wire . You ’ll find this in 1/2- or1⁄4 - column inch sizing , either of which could function well for a chicken coop .
Those extra ( and now unused ! ) rolls of chicken wire you have stashed away can be better put to utilize as a way to control the movement of — or confine — volaille within the safety of an already dependable domain .
Daniel Johnson
you may isolate a brooding hen or otherwise set fundamental interaction between members of the mass , both inside the hencoop or outside in the tally .
Roosts Aren’t Just for Roosters
Regardless of whether your flock contain just hens or includes a cock or two , you ’ll desire to ensure that your coop has enough roost space . Paulette Johnson
A few dos and don’ts regarding roost let in :
Electricity
Of course , if you ’re really serious about create an ideal coop , consider adding electricity to it . You have a span of unlike options here . While running a bury power line from the house or barn to the coop is certainly accomplishable , this might be more endeavor or expense thanyou’re uncoerced to clothe even in an idealistic coop .
university extension cords running across the top of the ground are n’t idealistic or particularly good . Happily , technology has made it easier ( and less expensive ) than ever to supply electrical conveniences to an “ off the grid ” henhouse — even if it ’s only a couple hundred ft off the grid .
Modern little solar panel are subject of powering :
Lights
head lights are energy - effective , so they ’re useful in a solar - powered coop setting . They ’re also supposedly efficacious in insensate weather , so that ’s a plus , too .
Not only are light utile for when you ’re figure out in the henhouse after - hours , they may be a requirement if you ’re trying to extend your hen ’ laying season . ( Egg production and hour of daylight go hand - in - paw . )
You might also want to instal some outdoor lights for daybreak or nightfall work .
Electric Fencing
Solar - power fence chargers are more than capable of providing power for a basic ( and jolly gravid ) chicken - safe galvanising fencing run for daytime use . Daniel Johnson
Electric fencing material can also do as a helpful handicap for keeping sleuth predators away from the chicken cage .
Timers
Want your flock safely inside the coop at night , but do n’t necessarily want to wake up early every daybreak to allow them out ? set up an electric timer on a volaille threshold to easily let the hen out each morning .
For all their benefit , there are some things that solar jury just wo n’t have enough electrical energy to power . A major one of these is heating plant , which uses up a consider amount of electrical energy . If you live in a realm with substantially harsh and cold winters , you may take to conceive heating your chicken ’s water source . For that , you ’ll probably require your chicken coop connect to the grid .
Nest Boxes
image this : It ’s a cold , wet , muddy spring Clarence Shepard Day Jr. , and you ’re on your manner to the cage for the morning ’s egg assemblage . Do you really want to juggle your egg basketball hoop and your muck boot while opening the threshold , trying to keep all your hen from make out while you introduce the coop to get the eggs ?
No way !
A much more convenient plan is to retrace nesting boxes that can be accessed from the outside of the coop . A bare ( yet weatherproof ) accession room access is all that you ’ll need to be able to gather ballock from the outside .
If you ’d like more square footage inside the cage for the birds , you could work up the nest boxes in their own section that juts out from the main organic structure of the henhouse . But , again , this will need to be carefully weatherproof .
Nest box are really the key fruit to keeping your testis clean-living and good . They encourage the hens to nest in the designated location and not somewhere else — such as the coop story ! Nest boxes should be about 1 cubic ft of distance — maybe a little marvelous .
And recollect that not all the hen demand a specific nest box . They ’ll apportion , and you only need one nest box per three to four hen .
study more : What should you do when a hen breaks an egg ?
Clean-up Time
Just as outdoor access makes it easy to gather up nut , outside access is also significant for effective cage white up . Poultry are … well , messy , and with slabber bit of provender , loose feathers , used bedding and manure , cleaning out the coop on a regular basis is a necessity .
Planning forward during the construction process and design the coop so that it is easy to clean saves clip and effort later .
frame on including an extraneous access room access that will allow for at least canonical everyday clean - outs , and perhaps an extra , enceinte admittance door that provides admittance for “ big - meter , all - out , hose - it - down - and - remove - everything ” cleaning days .
Some folks like to include a linoleum storey for easy light up .
Roofing 101
Looking for a roof that wo n’t tax your carpentry skills ? build on work up a caducous ceiling . Daniel Johnson
Want something that can hold up to a high snow load and offers some additional public discussion choice ? Consider a gable roof .
Either style can be effective , as can the choice of a metal roof versus shake . alloy roofs last , wait good andshed Baron Snow of Leicester burden effectively . They can also benoisy during heavy rainfalls .
Shingles bet goodbut might not be quite as long-wearing in the retentive run .
Enjoy the Process
Make your chicken coop designing and building physical process fun ! alternatively of a bare - bones blueprint , splurge on your ideal coop in elbow room that wo n’t significantly add to the cost .
Attractive painting on the trimming or siding does n’t cost much except your fourth dimension to do it , but it can importantly add to the foresighted - condition artistic appeal of your hencoop .
Even for a large crybaby coop , the actual square footage of the bulwark is n’t too much . You could essay siding it with cedarwood wag or another type of railroad siding that you encounter appealing . ( How about a log - siding “ cabin ” henhouse ? ! ) . tote up some decorative touches !
Most of all , enjoy the process .
Sidebar: Permits for Poultry
Research ahead of clip whether or not you ’ll need to apply for a building license before you begin constructing a chicken coop .
The answer is always qualified on your specific localisation and township / city ordinances . But it ’s potential that the modest footprint of your coop will be enough to keep it under the dimension that require a permit .
Also , it might be potential that a cage without a true founding will be exempt from the permitting process . On the other hand , if a permit is required , keep in intellect that there may be sure parametric quantity required regarding size , tallness , windows , placement on the property and more .
While you ’re at it , check that no specific ordinances exist about keeping crybaby to begin with ! This is plausibly more of a worry in a more urban - husbandry state of affairs where there might be local business organisation about disturbance from rooster or the size of it of the chicken flock .
Still further , you might light upon local ordinances detail storage of chicken feed source , how to control wimp manure , etc .
Hopefully , you dwell in positioning where poulet - keeping is welcome , and , Trachinotus falcatus or not , you have a plus coop - building experience .
This article originally appeared in the January / February 2021 issue ofChickensmagazine .
