[?] Subscribe To This Site

Happy And Healthy Chickens Love A Well Designed Chicken Coop

Your chicken coop is a place that contains nesting boxes for laying eggs and perches for roosting. Usually it is connected to a chicken pen by a small door.

When you decide on your coop make sure it has these features:

well ventilated.

provide plenty of light.

protection from predators.

Nesting boxes with easy access.

Easy to clean and maintain.

Enough perch space for each chicken(10"per chicken).

Well insulated(cold climates).

Before you run out and purchase your coop, please make sure you check with your city or town on local zoning regulations. Most zoning ordinances allow for small backyard flocks. But check first.

Check out this interesting article about Sharon hatching her chicken house

Coop designs can be as simple as a wooden box or as elaborate as mini mansions. When building a coop, keep things simple. Choose a plan that is simple but functional, easy to build, and does not drain your wallet.

Choose a plan that is simple but functional, easy to build, and does not drain your wallet.

By the way, if you are interested in just sticking your toe in the water you may want to start out small and invest in a chicken tractor. Sometimes called chicken arks, these are small portable coops usually for three to four chickens. For some people this may be all they want. It's fairly simple to maintain and should provide plenty of fresh eggs for two people. This is a great way to get started raising chickens without spending a whole lot of money.

The next question is:

Do I purchase a coop that is already built or do I build one from scratch? Many people will tell you that anybody can do this, its simple and takes very few skills if you just buy their plans.

I have been a builder for 15 years and one thing I have discovered is that some people do not have the skills needed to build a coop, on top of that those same people usually do not own the right tools to do the project.

If you are one of those people then a pre-built coop is right for you. Even though you may spend a little more money, it is not worth your time, aggravation and frustration. Remember, this is a hobby and suppose to be a joy for the whole family.

Now, for those of you up to the challenge of building a coop there are many things that will effect your appearance and design. Chicken coop designs are all over the internet. There are even some free coop plans, but be careful because these can sometimes cause you more aggravation than they are worth. Remember the old saying nothing is free in life.

One of the main functions that your coop provides is protection from

chicken predators. Whatever design you decide on, you must be sure that you make it sturdy enough to keep the guys listed on our chicken predators page out of the coop. You can help with this by checking for gaps in wire, putting good latches on doors, and wiring over the tops of your chicken pens..

Building a chicken coop is the most difficult part of raising chickens, but it can also be one of the most rewarding. Once your coop is built you get to set back and enjoy your new babies.

Your Chicken Coop Photos

Want to show off your chicken coop. Submitting pictures of your coop is free and easy. Just fill in the form below, upload your picture, and hit the submit button. When your submission is accepted your photo will become a live page on this site. You may upload as many pictures as you want, using a new submission page for each one.

You can also make a slide show at slide.com.

Following their directions, put the Embed Code in the "tell us your chicken coop story here" area, below. There's no need to upload pictures if you use the slide show.

Don't forget to include any of your favorite stories about how you built your coop.

Have fun.

Show-off photos of your chicken coop

Do you have pictures of your chicken coop? Do you have stories of how you built your chicken coop? If you do we would love-it, if you shared them with us.

Put the "title" of your chicken coop story or picture here.

Click here to see the rest of the form and complete your submission.

What Other People Have Said About Building Their Chicken Coop.

Click below to see contributions from other people

Greenhouse chicken tractor

Greenhouse chicken tractor: We live in southwest Washington state where it can rain a lot. We tried all wood designs at first but by mid winter they would ...

Built My Own Chicken Coop

Built My Own Chicken Coop: When I decided to start raising chickens in the spring of 2009, I started looking around at pre-made coops (too expensive), coop ...

Brand New Coop

Brand New Coop: Built a brand new coop at our new house. I bought a bank foreclosure and redid the whole thing, interior and exterior. The coop turned ...

Chicken Tractor

I saw this and had to show this to somebody. This is a half built chicken tractor. I know it's ugly but I guess it will work.

Simple chicken coop

Simple chicken coop: Funds were limited, and I really wanted my own flock of chickens. I had some PVC pipe left over from a job and used it to build ...

Chickens safe and secure

Not rated yet
Chickens safe and secure: I built this coop solid so it will last for years. The run is 9x16 covered with one half inch hardware cloth not one hole bigger ...

Chickens Welcome Moose (and Bear)

Not rated yet

Our little flock of 10 love to welcome any wildlife intruders that enter our yard. Here, they are welcoming a cow moose that comes by weekly in the summer....

Return From Chicken Coop to Raising Chickens Homepage

New! Comments

Have your say about what you just read! Leave me a comment in the box below.

Custom Search

Chicken Stuff

We now carry chicken supplies. Please help support us by purchasing your chicken needs through our store.

Click Here: Chicken Store

"The Tipsy Chicken"

After diligently browsing many festivals throughout the southeast I came upon an artist who shares the same love and passion for animals as I do. This artist has this incredible ability to bring a whimsical flair to every piece of art. The Tipsy Chicken is a print specially designed for those who have a love for chickens.

8X10 Print - $20 plus tax(4x6 Image Area on 8x10 Mat)

11X14 Print - $40 plus tax(7x10 Image Area on 11x14 Mat)

Note: $5 for shipping up to 3 pieces if mailed together.