i have dramatically changed the chicken coop. it is two feet wider 10 by 8. tabitha wanted to be able accommodate 50 chickens. she entertains the idea of selling eggs. the yellow circles are the chicken roost spacing recommended by Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens. the roosts will stair step up from the center. 12" apart stepping up 12" each time toward the edges.
per kramer's recommendation i ditched the idea of sloping nest boxes. his argument was too compelling. i plan to have the 55 gallon drums on casters so i can move them around to make my life easier. there will be 12 nest boxes total.
the chicken run is just a suggestion right now. it will be whatever i find reasonable when i build it. definitely larger than shown here.
3 comments:
Hey, just wanted to say I love the new header picture up top!
Appreciate the link to my blog. Didn't mean to sway you but I do think you will find it much easier on you. Just today I found a hen roosting in a hiding spot with 12 or more eggs. Thats without slopping boxes so I guess you can never completely take the natural instincts out of them. Oh well, chicks are exciting, more so in spring than winter.
with the sloping nest boxes and no padding for them to land on, i'd fear breakage more than anything.
we haven't had much a problem of renegade layers. we keep them in their pen until midday and then let them roam freely. those who haven't laid eggs yet always go back to the nesting boxes to do so but we have straw in the beds to cushion them. when the straw dwindles, the egg breakage rises dramatically.
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