Chicken Coops for Sale in Cairo, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Cairo, Illinois
Mobile chicken coop and run
We designed and built our own chicken coop and run and even if it ain’t perfect I still think it is a pretty functional design.
The coop (in green) is 4ft wide, 4ft tall and 3 ft deep, which is supposedly enough room for 10 chickens (I have 5). The coop is on wheels. 2 of the wheels (diagonally opposed) have breaks that lock in. It is heavy and awkward to move the coop alone, but it can be done in a pinch. My plan is to move it around the lawn and push it about 4 feet each week, which will only take a few minutes with a helping hand. The front door of the coop is for cleaning the inside of the coop and accessing eggs. The chicken door is in the back and leads directly into the movable run. The chicken door closes and locks via a cord to the front, which makes it easy to lock the chickens in at night. Vents covered with netting are located close to the top of both the front and the back wall for adequate ventilation. Because it is a cold spring here in Oregon and the chickens are still young I hung a piece of clear plastic over the back vent to keep the coop a little warmer.
The front door locks securely with two separate types of latches. The coop has a flat wood roof covered with a slanted metal roof that overhangs about 2 inches over the sides of the coop.
The run is 8 ft long, 3ft wide and 3 ft high. It is fully covered with a metal roof. The run attaches to the coop with latches and can easily be taken off to be moved separately. At the other end of the run is a wood door that opens and allows me to give the chickens water and food. The run is “skirted” on the long ends, which means that wire netting is attached along the ground to keep raccoons from digging their way into the run. I am currently holding the “skirt” down with flagstones but would like to use some sort of nails or some other less clumsy solution. Any suggestions?
Freya is heading in, Barney is heading out!
Their roost is a natural stick which I sanded smooth.
I know raccoons visit my backyard so safety was a main concern in the design. It was difficult finding the balance between making the coop and run roomy and safe but at the same time lightweight enough for being mobile. By being able to move the chicken run around the lawn I save myself the trouble of having to donate a section of my backyard to becoming an inhospitable dirt patch and the chickens get new clean green pastures every week. My lawn is free of chemicals and consists mostly of clovers, which my chickens are munching down as happily as if they were worms. By supplying the chickens with plenty of greens and bugs I can cut down on the amount of feed I have to buy.
My run is on the small side but I am hoping to build a very simple second run (without roof and safety features) that can be attached to the end of my current run on days when I am around to keep an eye out for predators.
When I first started thinking about raising chickens and looked at the cost of buying a ready-made coop I thought the price of coops were ridiculously high and thought it would be much, much cheaper to build my own. I am not so sure of that anymore… I think I have spent about $250 on materials for the coop and run. Beyond the cost it has taken many, many days of work to plan it, find and buy materials (I tried to reuse materials and buy from the rebuilding center when possible) and assembly.
Thanks Chris, Mike and Geoff for your help with building this thing!
Share this:
Like this:
Related
Baby Yellow Chick in Cairo, Illinois
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Cairo Illinois" 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 Cairo Illinois chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Cairo, Illinois With the significant rise in poultry maintaining there has been an equally huge surge in the range of poultry materiel on sale. Poultry housing is an instance in point. It's likewise a timeless example of the good old bandwagon being jumped on as different potential fowl real estate experts market a variety of cottage declaring to be the optimal solution to your chicken housing requirements. Often the cost looks attractive, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks appealing, heck even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Undoubtedly they understand a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are many low-cost as well as horrible cages swamping the market. I know this as I've examined a variety of them in the area, as well as seen a ewe run directly through one when the feed pail appeared. The outcome was just a pricey stack of firewood and also a tiny flock of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Baby Chick Enclosure in Cairo, Illinois
Most of the time these standardized models are constructed of rapid grown up wood - come the first drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either blockading a door that won't close, or tearing the doorway furnishings off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking residents. The first warm and comfortable day implies the lumber dries out as well as fractures, the felt roof bubbles and also boils, and come nightfall the chickens choose not to go in. This is not because of their frustration at the decline of their when eye-catching commercial property yet since the hovel is currently a place for, and possibly crawling with, the poultry keeper's bane, red mite. Add that it said on the blurb that it would certainly match 4 large hens when that stocking density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as just what are you entrusted? A number of hinges and some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to 4 birds must cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this could depend on whether you elect for a cost-free standing house or one with a run attached. Thinking you are varying your birds in a large area and the pop hole doorway allows sufficient for the type you keep, then the major requirements of housing boil down to three factors which will define the variety of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. The majority of breeds of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch ought to ideally be 5-8cm vast with smoothed off sides so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch should be higher than the nest box access as chickens will additionally normally look for the highest point to perch. A perch less than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they create the most poo) resulting in soiled eggs the list below day. They shouldn't nonetheless be so high off the flooring of your house that leg injuries could happen when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens require concerning 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is clearly much less), plus if greater than one perch is mounted in your house they must be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors however are not that keen on roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Preferably your house needs to have a the very least one nest box for every 3 birds as well as these ought to be off the ground and also in the darkest area of your house. The house needs to have sufficient ventilation: without it then condensation will certainly build up every evening, even in the coldest of climate. Realize, ventilation works on the concept of warm air leaving via a high void drawing cooler air in from a reduced void - it's not a collection of holes on contrary walls of the house and also at the very same degree, this is exactly what's called a draught. If you have a house with a run attached after that the points above are still true, however you should likewise consider the run dimension. The EU maximum lawful stocking thickness for a free array bird is (and also allow's encounter it, one of the inspirations for maintaining some hens in your home is potentially enhanced or better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m settled. Take a close check out a few of the bargain homes - it could well be your home has the best perches, proper ventilation as well as sufficient nest boxes for an affordable variety of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to spend the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you get exactly what you pay for". You could think you've got hold of a deal, but you and also your flock could possibly rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house and it will certainly last for a couple of years, otherwise longer offered the appropriate treatment. In the end your fowl as well as your fowl maintaining encounter will be considerably the far better for it.chicken coops
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Alexis, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Anna, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Batchtown, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Bardolph, Illinois
Chicken Coops for Sale in Baileyville, Illinois