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Chicken Coops for Sale in Kilbourne, Louisiana

Chicken Coops for Sale in Kilbourne, Louisiana

Our Finished Chicken Coop

These past few days had us outside enjoying the beautiful weather. One of the jobs I crossed off the list was to clean out our new chicken coop.

Because of our over the past year or so, our family was going through several dozen eggs a week. (I can’t help it – I’m hooked on !)

So last summer we quit “planning” to get our own chickens, and actually did it. The whole family pitched in to build a little abode for our egg-laying beauties. And because we were first-time chicken owners and newbies in all chicken-related topics, we joined and gleaned months worth of ideas, do’s and don’ts, and building plans. (I can’t recommend this site highly enough! If you have the slightest inclination of doing chicken anything, go here and read to your heart’s content.)

It was so helpful to see photos and designs when we were in the planning stages, I thought I’d share pictures of our coop and the hows and whys of what we did.

The chicken coop

Instead of starting from scratch, we bought a small granary from my brother-in-law; about 9’x7′ inside measurements. This gave us about 3 sq. ft. per bird. The coop is nothing fancy really. It isn’t visible from the road and we don’t live in town with neighbors to care about the view from their back window, so we used as much scrap material as possible. Plus we didn’t think the chickens would mind.

So far they haven’t rebelled.

We re-tinned the roof (that’s my honey!) and I got to use the saw sawl to make holes for the windows and vents. You can call me Mrs. Handyman. . .

Inside the chicken coop

Framing the windows and vents was the most time consuming part since the building wasn’t square. We used insulation and vapor barrier for the walls for added moisture protection and warmth because the windchill can get -40 below or more in the winter.

We made the roosting boards parallel and the same height because apparently hens will act like old biddies and fight for the top most board. (Some people’s kids. . .)

We rounded the edges of the roosting boards so it’s easier on the hens’ feet. The boards can be removed for ease of cleaning the poop boards underneath.

Poop boards seemed quite popular among chicken peoples and we’ve quickly learned why. First, chickens poop more when roosting, so the roosting boards are placed above the poop board. This makes clean up as simple as buying a wide sheetrock mudding tool and scraping the droppings into a bucket each day. We then add the droppings to our compost pile.

We originally built a rollaway community nesting box directly underneath the poop board, but the chickens ended up laying eggs everywhere but there. Eventually we added a ‘normal’ set of 12″x12″x12″ nesting boxes and they’re happy campers again.

We decided to use the deep litter method. We spread a bag of wood chips on the floor and because the hens leave most of their droppings on the poop boards, there’s minimal waste on the floor. The chickens like to scratch and fluff the wood chips so it gets stirred up and aerated. This means the coop is less smelly, and there’s only a few minutes of daily cleaning of the boards. If needed, you can add more wood chips throughout the year.

We clean the coop out fully in the spring and fall. So far it’s worked wonderfully.

We nailed a board across the doorway to prevent the rising litter from falling out every time we opened the door.

The feeders are gravity fed. They’re made of PVC pipe with a 90 degree corner and a cap at the end. We like that we can leave for several days at a time and don’t have to worry about having someone come out to do chicken chores for us.

This water stand was Travis’s idea. The hens have a platform to stand on so no matter how high the litter gets, they can reach the water comfortably.

The chicken nipples underneath are another idea shared by BYC that I LOVE. The water doesn’t drip, there is no poop or mud to worry about, and our full grown hens figured it out within 24 hrs. The pails are covered with lids to prevent the water from getting dirty and it lasts for at least a week (we add apple cider vinegar).

When we’re home, we clean them out and give them fresh water every few days.

There’s electricity on the wall above the waterers with a timed light switch. We use bird bath heaters to keep the water from freezing during the winter. We had to add the slanted plywood because the hens were roosting on the pails. (I told you they fought for highest roosting privileges.)

The pop door is a simple design, and it works great. It slides up and down, held in by L shaped boards.

When in the closed position, the hook and eye on the right prevent racoons (or children!) from trying to lift the door from the outside.

We used 1/2″ x 1/2″ hardware cloth to cover the insides of the windows and vents. . .

. . .and plexiglass for the actual windows.

We made sure to have plenty of vents (thanks to sage advice from Pat’s Ventilation Page) and used eyes and rope to open and close them at different heights.

Finally, we added a small lean-to to the side so the hens could come out in the winter. This helps block snow drifts right in front of the pop door, and they can still come out for fresh air and sunshine when they get cabin fever.

It might not win a beauty contest – but there’s something to be said for function-ability  Hope this gave you some ideas!

What have you done to your chicken coop? We’d love to hear your ideas and suggestions!

 

 

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I’m Paula - like many of you I wear a lot of hats. Child of God, wife of 19 years, mother of 5 earthly children (and another on the way), reluctant cook, chocolate-snatcher, and health and fitness coach at . Various family health issues including Lyme disease and candida has turned me into a 'researcher' with a passion for understanding how our God-created bodies thrive or deteriorate based on what we put in it.

Latest posts by Paula ()

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Chicken coops for sale in Kilbourne Louisiana can be found in agricultural newspapers and community newspapers. The coops are designed for housing for chickens in a safe and secure environment. They generally consist of a small building or large box that is then sectioned off to smaller boxes where the chickens go to roost (or sleep). Chicken coops are a must for raising chickens. Kilbourne Louisiana chicken coops are commonly constructed from wood products. They are not very stable buildings and provide only minimal protection from the elements. Now chicken houses used for large production facilities are a entirely different structure, they are huge and can hold up to 10000 chickens. The coops are typically used for backyard operations, or small family farms. They vary in size depending on the number of residents they house. chicken-coops-in-Kilbourne-LAFinding chicken coops for sale in Kilbourne Louisiana is probably not one of the easiest of items to find. There are manufacturers of chicken houses and coops that sell them out right and Kilbourne Louisiana farm supply stores that they can also be purchased through, but generally speaking it will take some effort to find a chicken coop for sale in Kilbourne Louisiana, especially if your location is not a typically rural location. In rural locations that are much more abundant and easily had. Chicken Coops for sale in Kilbourne LA

Chicken Coop Run Plans in Kilbourne, Louisiana

A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Kilbourne Louisiana" 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 Kilbourne Louisiana chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Kilbourne, Louisiana With the massive rise in poultry keeping there has actually been a just as big rise in the range of chicken materiel on sale. Fowl housing is a case in point. It's also a timeless instance of the excellent old bandwagon being jumped on as numerous would-be chicken real estate experts market a variety of holiday accommodation claiming to be the suitable option to your chicken housing needs. Often the rate looks appealing, your house looks appealing, heck also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Surely they know a quality chicken house when they see one? There are many economical and also unpleasant cages flooding the market. I understand this as I've examined a number of them in the field, as well as seen a ewe run directly via one when the feed container showed up. The result was only a pricey heap of fire wood and a small group of bemused and currently homeless bantams. Chickens for sale in Kilbourne LA

Chicken Coop For 6 Chickens in Kilbourne, Louisiana

Most of the time these standardized models are built of fast grown timber - come the first drop of rainfall they swell, leaving you either blockading a door that will not shut, or tearing the door furnishings off in a vain attempt to launch the squawking citizens. The very first cozy day implies the hardwood dries out and cracks, the felt roof bubbles as well as boils, and also come nightfall the chickens refuse to go in. This is not because of their frustration at the decline of their when desirable property yet due to the fact that the hovel is now a sanctuary for, and also most likely abounding, the fowl keeper's bane, red mite. Add that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly match 4 big hens when that equipping density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and also what are you left with? A number of joints as well as some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to four birds need to cost you approximately ₤ 300 though this could depend on whether you choose for a complimentary standing house or one with a run affixed. Assuming you are ranging your birds in a huge room and also the pop opening doorway allows sufficient for the breed you keep, after that the major requirements of real estate come down to 3 points which will specify the variety of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. A lot of types of chicken will perch when they visit roost at night, this perch needs to ideally be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off sides so the foot rests comfortably on it. The perch needs to be above the nest box entrance as chickens will certainly also naturally seek the highest point to perch. A perch less than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they generate the most poo) bring about soiled eggs the following day. They should not nonetheless be so high off the floor of your home that leg injuries could possibly take place when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens need regarding 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is certainly much less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in your home they should be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors yet are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Preferably your home ought to have a least one nest box for every three birds and these ought to be off the ground and in the darkest location of the house. Your house should have appropriate ventilation: without it then condensation will certainly accumulate every night, also in the chilliest of weather. Be aware, ventilation works with the principle of warm and comfortable air leaving through a high void drawing cooler air in from a lower void - it's not a collection of openings on other walls of the house as well as at the very same level, this is just what's called a draught. If you have a house with a run attached after that the points above are still true, yet you should additionally think about the run size. The EU optimum lawful equipping thickness for a totally free array bird is (and also let's face it, among the motivations for maintaining some chickens in your home is perhaps improved or far better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m squared. Take a close look at several of the deal houses - it could well be your house has the ideal perches, correct ventilation and adequate nest boxes for a reasonable variety of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? And so as the stating goes, "you obtain what you spend for". You could think you've got hold of a deal, yet you as well as your flock could rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house and it will certainly last for a few years, otherwise longer provided the appropriate treatment. In the long run your poultry and your fowl keeping encounter will be much the far better for it.
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