Chicken Coops for Sale in Tarpon Springs, Florida
Chicken Coops for Sale in Tarpon Springs, Florida
How To Set Up Your Chicken Coop
Often when people buy chickens from us they’ve never owned poultry before therefore I usually find myself explaining the basics of operating a healthy and effective coop. As I grew up on a farm much of it is second nature but many city folk are unsure of just whats involved. The easiest and quickest way to get the message across is to take them on a tour of our back section to see how everything in our coop has be arranged.
The important aspects I talk about are:
Feed …
Because chickens grow so fast I use larger feeders as soon as possible. If you are raising them from day one there are feeders available that have been designed to cover the first couple of weeks. After that one on an adjustable rope works well as its just a matter of raising the height from time to time as the chickens grow. To get the best results it needs to be kept high enough to be accessible but not too low as to allow litter and droppings to be scratched into it. As can be seen in the photo above an off cut of PVC down pipe with holes drilled through it works well as a cheap grit feeder. Commercial feeds normally have grit added however I wonder if its sufficient as our hens regularly go through a 2 kilo bag of crushed oyster shell.
Feeding guide …
Day old to 6 -8 weeks … chick starter crumbles. 8 – 14 weeks … pullet grower or similar. 14 weeks onward … regular chook feed. 18 – 20 weeks or just prior to the commencement of laying … oyster shell grit.
Don’t over do the kitchen scraps as the nutritional value from these is fairly low. If they are fed as a substitute for a properly balance diet egg production will suffer.
Water …
Its important to have a plentiful supply of good clean water at all times. Hens don’t drink much at anyone time but they do drink often and even more so during spring and summer when air temperatures increase. I always leave the coop door open when our hens free range as they can get cool water whenever they need it. Hens drinking dirty contaminated water from containers and puddles is a recipe for disease.
If its not clean enough for you to drink you shouldn’t give it to your hens.
As shown above I prefer to used a fixed water container as the hanging versions leak and spill water when knocked. Its easily removed for cleaning and is installed in such a way to prevent debris getting into it.
Perches …
Chickens have a natural instinct to perch therefore it important to provide good sturdy perches. The ones in our coup are about 5cm square and have the sharp edges taken off to make them more chicken friendly. Tree branches of a similar diameter also work well if they are reasonably straight. The perches shown above are approximately 50cm and 80cm above the floor however I set them at lower levels when I first introduce 3 to 4 week old chicks. They should be fixed securely to the coop walls whilst being easily removable for cleaning.
Even when I have day old chicks under lights I provide perches as its a habit that I want them to learn as soon as possible because it makes my job so much easier. There’s no space on my daily to do list for cleaning dirty nesting boxes and eggs. Perch space per bird should be about 20cm.
Without suitable perches hens will perch on what ever is handy namely nesting boxes, feeders and the like or they will crowd into a corner of a coop. The end result will be a hard mound of droppings which will ultimately end up in feathers on claws then into nesting boxes and subsequently onto eggs. Correctly positioned perches eliminates crowding, flighty hens, dirty eggs and ensures your hens will be more relaxed and manageable.
Like all females of the species they need to be pampered. My other half constantly reminds me that I pay more attention to our Flora’s that I do to her. Its not true of course !!
Nesting boxes …
For me keeping hens is all about egg production therefore when we I invested extra time and effort into creating workable nesting boxes.
- One nesting box for every 4 hens, wonder why sometimes as they all seem to lay in the same box.
- Easily accessible for me from the outside.
- Easily accessible for the hens from the inside.
- Removable for easy cleaning.
- Spacious … 40cm height x 40cm width x 40cm depth or thereabouts.
- Weather proof.
- 10cm lip at the front to keep shavings and eggs in.
When introducing young chickens I keep the boxes closed off until near the time when they will start laying. This is to ensure that they use the perches rather than sleeping in and fouling the boxes. As mentioned previously this means only one thing, dirty eggs.
Deep litter …
We use a deep litter system as it makes for easy maintenance and reduces the need to be continually cleaning chicken manure out of the coop. Simply put the floor is covered with a 10cm layer of untreated wood shavings which is raked over every few days. A more detailed explanation of this concept can be .
Access – easy and straight forward …
- Human sized entry, applicable if you need a large coop.
- Removing old litter is almost effortless, especially when I have to work the camera !
- Predator proof entry- exit.
A user friendly coop ensures that keeping hens doesn’t become just another unwanted chore so build or buy wisely.
Chicken Coop You Can Walk In in Tarpon Springs, Florida
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Tarpon Springs Florida" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Tarpon Springs Florida chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Tarpon Springs, Florida With the huge rise in chicken maintaining there has been a similarly large surge in the range of poultry paraphernalia on sale. Fowl real estate is a situation in factor. It's additionally a traditional instance of the good old bandwagon being got on as various potential poultry housing experts market an array of cottage claiming to be the suitable option to your chicken real estate requirements. Typically the price looks desirable, your house looks desirable, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Surely they understand a professional chicken house when they see one? There are several economical and also nasty cages flooding the market. I know this as I've examined a number of them in the area, and also seen a ewe run directly with one when the feed bucket showed up. The result was just a pricey pile of fire wood and a small group of bemused and now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Kits in Tarpon Springs, Florida
Generally these standardized models are created of quick grown up lumber - come the initial decline of rainfall they swell, leaving you either fortifying a doorway that won't close, or ripping the door furnishings off in a vain attempt to release the squawking inhabitants. The initial warm and comfortable day suggests the lumber dries and cracks, the felt roof covering bubbles and boils, and come nightfall the chickens choose not to enter. This is not due to their frustration at the decrease of their when desirable building but considering that the hovel is now a place for, and also probably crawling with, the fowl caretaker's bane, red mite. Add that it claimed on the blurb that it would suit four big chickens when that stocking density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and also exactly what are you left with? A few joints and also some kindling. A good coop for thee to four birds must cost you approximately ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you elect for a cost-free standing house or one with a run affixed. Assuming you are varying your birds in a large space and also the pop opening doorway is big sufficient for the type you maintain, after that the main needs of real estate come down to three points which will certainly define the variety of birds your home will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and ventilation. A lot of breeds of chicken will perch when they go to roost at night, this perch must ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch ought to be more than the nest box entry as chickens will additionally naturally search for the acme to perch. A perch below that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they create one of the most poo) bring about dirtied eggs the following day. They should not however be so high off the flooring of your house that leg injuries can take place when the bird comes down in the early morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in tiny types this is obviously less), plus if greater than one perch is mounted in your home they ought to be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their next-door neighbors however are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your house ought to have a least one nest box for each 3 birds and also these need to be off the ground as well as in the darkest location of the house. The house needs to have appropriate ventilation: without it after that condensation will certainly develop every evening, also in the chilliest of weather condition. Realize, air flow works with the principle of cozy air leaving via a high space attracting cooler air in from a lower void - it's not a collection of openings on opposite wall surfaces of your house and also at the exact same level, this is exactly what's called a draft. If you have a house with a run attached then the points above are still real, but you ought to also consider the run dimension. The EU maximum legal stocking density for a totally free range bird is (and also let's encounter it, among the motivations for keeping some hens in your home is potentially boosted or better well-being) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m made even. Take a close look at a few of the deal houses - it could well be the house has the right perches, proper ventilation and ample nest boxes for an affordable variety of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? And so as the saying goes, "you obtain just what you pay for". You may believe you've grabbed a bargain, but you and also your group could rue the day you did. Acquisition the ideal house as well as it will last for a few years, if not longer offered the proper therapy. In the long run your poultry as well as your fowl keeping experience will certainly be much the far better for it.coops chickens
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Sanderson, Florida
Chicken Coops for Sale in Key West, Florida
Chicken Coops for Sale in Chipley, Florida
Chicken Coops for Sale in Palm Beach, Florida
Chicken Coops for Sale in Ochopee, Florida