AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™

Thanks Chickababe

Glad you like it. All credit goes to hubby though, I was just the apprentice who held the end of the tape measure or passed the bits & pieces.

We got our inspiration from two types of coops that we found from the BYC site.

We used Vermin & Mouse proof mesh which is 6.5mm x 6.5mm squares & 1200 high, which is the smallest squares you can get & the largest height mesh. No vermin going in this baby!
Yes, the girls have a mezzanine level exactly like the first link (below), which you will see there is a floor for the storage room (theirs is outside; we put ours inside) & a floor for the girls mezzanine level. But no we didn't use mesh on their bedroom floor. It is some sort of sheeting (not sure what it's called) & I have covered it with wood shavings, so their droppings are able to be easily picked up.

I haven't taken any photos of the inside as hubby hasn't done the doors for the storage room below the girls bedroom.
Because we ran out of day yesterday he just tacked a sheet on the front of the storage room so the girls wouldn't go in there. Plus we still need to put a lock on the doors to the girls bedroom. I am not sure if I will paint the inside yet as I don't want the girls to put up with paint fumes.

They are totally safe from predators, wind & rain when they are tucked up in their bed at night.

http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/kicho ... icken-coop

http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-t ... icken-coop

If you are after inspiration, I can't say enough about the BYC site, there is all types of coops to look at & gather inspiration from.

Cheers
Chicka-Dee

Wish that my dad wore cotton socks so that we could bless him, is that the secret to men building coops and runs cotton socks? Then I will have to get my dad a pair for his birthday!!!!

ahahahahaha i will have to buy some socks for myself. that must be the problem, i don't wear socks !!!

Silly me used all the posts for building... so now i have no fence posts... ahahaha i will have to do a temporary fence for now, until i get more fence posts. but on the up side..... i built a 3 bay nest box and put some roofing on and also put together some draw boxes... and then i found this metal ladder looking thing. I dont know what it was from or what it is used for but i am using it for a ladder up to the coop...
i even taught the chickens how to walk up and down it.... AHAHAHAH that was a sight to see... i held each chicken and made them step by step up the ladder and wouldn't let them jump off until the reached the top ! yeehaaa ! well i know they got the hang of it because they all put themselves to bed tonight. but they fly out instead of walking down...LOL

*Question* does the 'ladder' need to have like a ramp under it with steps??? mine just looks like a metal ladder with nothing under it. but i see everyone else has like a wooden ramp with bits stuck to it to get a footing. does it matter if nothing is under it? or will they slip and their legs fall through or something ???

You should be so proud BFLF of what you've done so far....you sound like you have the building gene. You definitely don't need socks! Lol. Very resourceful. Me...not so much!

I did the same with my girls. hahaha. They wanted to keep jumping off but I kept nudging them up & up so eventually they got to the top. Then.....they had to go into the scary black hole of the unknown as by the time we got our stairs built it was quite late in the afternoon & the doorway into their bedroom looked like they were going into an abyss lol. That took a lot of convincing for them to go in there, lol. They went in, but didn't stay in! hahaha. Our doorway doesn't have a door to close so we had to block them off from coming out with another sheet of ply, so then all we heard was a lot of talking. Obviously sorting out who sits where.

I wouldn't say so, if they are coping with what they have then I don't see any need to change it. I think your creativity needs to be applauded.

So.....when are we going to see some pics???

I'll take some pics this arvo when i put the boxes up (if it doesn't rain)..... my coop is going to be very open. there is going to be no doors except to get in and out of the run. once the run is finished it will all be secure so wont need to lock them up at night... so basically it is one big open plan living coop.... LOL

the coop plans and features so far include....


Sleep / roosting / feeding area.

Raised house for summer ventilation and flooding prevention. (NEVER floods here LOL)

Under cover hang out area (basement hang out)

3 bay Nesting area.

Open dirt space for frolicking in the sun and dust/dirt bathing.

Tall ceilings for tall humans to walk in without bending.

A special over turned bucket area. (as my chooks think it is fantastic to sit on a bucket in the sun. if they can find a bucket you can guarantee there is 2-3 of them on it at once. just hanging out)

Views of a lovely jungle of beautiful plants amongst wild weeds.
All situated under the shade of a giant mango tree . And you don't have to worry about falling mangos, as there NEVER grows any on the tree!

and 100% reused recycled materials SO FAR -environmental sustainability practices. As well a easy on the pocket.


ahahahahahahahahaa i even made that sound to to myself. i think i want to live there now

alright chicka-dee . some photos for you !!! the rain has finally stopped... and that is my excuse for the MESSY pen. ignore all the mess. i did clean it all up after these photos. why i didnt think of cleaning it first then the photos.... i dont know !!!! but it has been rain here for serval days so not much cleaning done in the pen.


This first photo is where the chooks have taken up sleeping now... they sleep on top of the dog crate in a huddle and on the hanging branches sometimes during the day. i guess it is one step closer to roosting on a perch.
i put their food and water in there too as it keeps it dry from the rain. also there IS a door if i need to lock them up. i just took it down while i was building, as it always got in my way.


This is my metal ladder thing i found.... makes a great ramp. the chicks can use it with no problems.
and if your looking in the back ground... YES my gate is held on with cable ties... LOL. i'll get around to wiring it eventually. works great though even with cable ties as hinges.



this is undercover hang out.... it stays dry under here when it rains.... i'll rake it and put hay under there for the chicks.. they like to sit under there when it is raining.. waiting for a break in the rain to go out again.


Another ladder. My 9yr old was the main builder of this creation.... haha. he did a fantastic job.
the ladder leads up to.........

This ! the laying boxes.... well they need some more work but hey they are turning out good. just hope the chooks use them.

There is a gap at the back of the laying boxes thing... the actual boxes sit over this gap, so no chickens or eggs will fall through, but for cleaning purposes i thought a small gap at the back will come in handy to just brush everything out if there is a mess in there.


i used a feed bag to go on the floor of the sleep area. so they have something to stand on instead of just wire. the gaps int he wire are a bit big but they walk on it ok with no issues. just if they were day old or small they could fall through....LOL ...but they are way to big now to fall through. so no probs there.

theres a old dog crate in the sleep part too.. they use to sleep in that when they were little. they do nothing but scratch the straw out of it but i thought i'll put it in there anyways as they can shelter from the cold if it gets cold or even lay in it if they chose to when they bigger... or they can just poop all over it and sleep ON TOP of it like they are now....LOL
The roof is corrugated something metal. and i've got a piece for the right hand side too. then all the walls and roof is water proofed. except for the front which is metal grate and ply wood. (the door)



This bucket is the best hang out ever .... according to the chickens... sometimes i turn it over and the chickens don't notice and fall right in...LOL whoops ! but it's ok they can jump out again.

the whole coop/pen is 6 foot high... the fence is temporary as it is being held up by stakes and some posts. i used most of the posts in other parts and forgot to leave them for the fence. oh well... for now it is holding up strong anyways with a bird netting roof. YAy i dont have to duck down anymore !

there is LOTs of random bricks laying around in and on the pen/coop. i might make a path or brick area. i dont know what to do with them all so left them laying around in random spots.
i finally got a feeder too. they started to just scratch all their food out of the dog bowl and it all falls down to the ground where it gets trampled. much better in a feeder. less waste.

for shade it is partially under a giant mango tree and now the under cover area is good for shade too... so don't need to add more. there is enough already.plus there is a wood shed right next to the pen. so that provides afternoon shade too.

the ground is dirt....but it is REALLY sandy (was a sand pit area 20+ years ago). and when it rains it isn't too bad at all. it drys really quick.
so far i have spend...... $0000000 NOTHING 000000. and will add more and make improvements as time goes on.


Any tips, feedback, suggestions appreciated. I'll do whatever to improve this. I just thought it would be fun to try and make something myself. but it will be an on going project.

and again... ignore the mess. that's resolved now....

Oh Wow BFLF, that looks Awsome!

I love everything you've done, so no suggestions because I think it looks fantastic. And super cudos to your 9 year old. He might have a future as a builder one day.lol. Definitely in the genes.

The girls look so happy & healthy now, you've done a fantastic job bring them back to heathy little chickens again.

The laying boxes look marvelous and I am still so envious that you spent $0.

Thank you for the picy's, I know everyone will enjoy seeing your set up just as much as I have.

thanks... i was worries it looks ugly...but then i though...who cares it is only for me to see and my chickens to hang in at night / days i am not home. I could have made a pretty looking little coop/tractor thing, like you see and can buy online with a tiny bed area consisting of only laying boxes and minimal space for chickens to stand with a roof that only the chickens could stand under... but then though... why make something so small when i have the room to make the pen BIG and TALL. so i chose ugly big space over tiny pretty area.

it really is up the FAR back area of my yard with several sheds and gardens in front of it.

But hey it works, it is spacious, it has shad and areas to sleep, rest and play and to dig and scratch in.

They are happy. and even if they are stuck in the pen they are still happy. they have room to run and fly and just be chickens.

Congratulations to you BigFishLittleFish and your progeny ,

All the nesting boxes need is some soft, inviting nesting material; eg straw, wood shavings etc and your girls will lay in them, don't think too much, it doesn't look ugly, what makes you think that? Your girls have had the best possible start to life!

Happy hens lay eggs...

AMAZING! YOU DESERVE A MEDAL! Persevering with ill chicks and building a truly brilliant structure from recycled materials with the help of an equally talented off spring

Recyle, Reuse, Reduce...

For all the hoarders and scavengers upon this plant ... There IS TOO MUCH WASTE polluting our existence...