Chicken Coops (house, fresh water, soil, coyote)

[LeisureSLarry]

I am going to start to build a chicken coop. I live in the country and there are lots of predators according to people in the area so maintaining a healthy chicken stock is a challenge. I am starting with concrete rubble I broke up from old tile drain pipe and am going to have gravel brought in over the top for the base and leveled. It is overgrown with weeds now but they are starting to die so I will post pictures once the base is prepared. There are 2 big trees on either side I want to hang a deterrent netting on. I am going to use hardware cloth on all sides at least 1ft away from the structure which will have chicken wire - kind of like a prison and I haven't figured out yet how the chicken run will look but want to secure the shed first. They will have access to the backyard but the wire cloth will back up to woods. Not a lot to go on I know but any suggestions will be used if I can make them work in my designs.

[sombrueil]

I've kept chickens for thirty years. Here's my suggestions:

1. think about how you're going to clean it out. My current (and the best one so far) coop is a repurposed 10x 14' goat shed. Besides a soil-cement floor and hardware-cloth vents, it also has a big sliding door. I bed the floor in sand. I scrape the droppings board every day and rake and sift the sand. Stays pretty clean if I change out the sand every year. My birds can spend many winter days inside and have room to scratch around etc.

2. Don't use chicken wire for anything. It doesn't keep any predators out, and it always looks like hell.

3. My runs are portable electrified netting designed for poultry. It doesn't keep aerial predators out, but if you keep it hot, it'll keep out everything else, even bears. My grow-out pen does have a wire fence top and is inside the electric netting, so double protection for the little guys.

[Hemlock140]

Our next-door neighbors and those two doors down both raise chickens, and the ones next door often bring us over a few eggs. We have raccoons, Bobcats, Coyotes, and Bears. Their chicken coops are all made of cyclone fence, sides and tops, with tarp covers to keep the rain out and provide shade. Anything less would allow the predators to get in.

[gemstone1]

I used 2x4 welded wire to cage in my chicken house, along with T1-11 siding...to keep critters out, only to find that the squirrels had no problem raiding the chicken feed thru the 2x4 openings....so chicken wire is now on top of the welded wire. Should have used 1x2 welded wire.

[Submariner]

Our coops are on bare soil. I have had to upgrade to a hardware cloth floor to prevent foxes from digging tunnels under the coops.

Weasels will chew holes through chicken wire, I have seen it.

I see a lot of people focusing on trying to heat a chicken coop, that is a wasted effort. Our chicken coops have loading pallets for sides. A fresh breeze does no harm, even at -20F and including a bit of snow blowing through.

I give our poultry fresh water once a day. In winter that water will freeze in an hour, if birds want a sip of water they can get it during that one-hour when it is still liquid. Always use rubber water bowls, so when they freeze you can flip them over with your toe and stomp to pop out the block of ice. Mostly I have seen our birds pecking at the fresh falling snow if they want water.

Never spend money on any contraption that heats drinking water.

[Diana Holbrook]

Make it bigger than you think it needs to be... chickens don't always get along and need plenty of roost space to spread out, and plenty of nest box options.

[WRM20]

A friend who keeps chickens in a rural area of Texas uses hardware cloth on his coop where the eggs are laid. Otherwise the snakes get some of the eggs and cause distress to the chickens.

[StealthRabbit]

There was recently some discussion on building Chicken Coops here
https://www.city-data.com/forum/65684986-post13.html

Build your enclosure to suit your predator type..

Opossums were our frequent distress. (Killing chickens)

Electric fence was helpful to deter most predators (Plus we covered the top of outdoor cage with wire due to airborne predators.)

[TamaraSavannah]

Just an outside note. In the wildfire evacuation here recently, my neighbors left the door open so if the fire got that far, the chickens had a chance. That night, however, the range of fire was reduced and they called me up, who had missed any evacuation order, if I could go over there to close the door on the coop so the night predators didn't get in.

And so I did, what are neighbors for?

So I guess, two things. First, consider what if events such as the above and what's a good way to handle them.

Secondly, when I went over there in the dark, I had my DL around my neck just incase there was a patrolling deputy in an evacuated area looking for looters. Quick ID to show who I was, back my stated purpose for being there. Once again, consider such possibilities of where you build yours, that if you need your neighbors to help when you are not there.....make it easier for them.

[Parnassia]

The very large bruin strolling across by deck last night reminded me why I don't keep chickens. Between building to withstand snow loads and keeping those out, their coop would need to be a second house!