Chicken Coops for Sale in Valley Springs, South Dakota
Chicken Coops for Sale in Valley Springs, South Dakota
Chicken Coop Rehab Addict
Do you watch Rehab Addict on the DIY channel? It’s a show about a young woman who rehabilitates old homes to their former glory. Except for the fact that she is young, tiny, cute, and rehabs houses, we are like twins! I am old, not tiny nor cute, and I am addicted to rehabbing chicken coops. Other than that, twins.
I have been rebuilding, redesigning, reconfiguring, repurposing, redecorating, and rehabilitating chicken coops since before I got chickens. It seems like I never quite get it right. There is always something that doesn’t work at all or could be improved upon. So I tinker.
The coops we bought when we moved to this property, although well built, were a complete miss-step. We ended up closing in the fronts, insulating them, and adding ventilation out the backs. I thought they were working well until the chickens decided that the nest boxes were much more comfortable for sleeping than the roosts. I won’t even go into the problems that caused. I had to close off the nest boxes in a couple of coops, forcing the hens to lay eggs on the floor, which created a whole new set of problems.
So, it was back to the drawing board. I knew that once I got them back up on the roosts at night, they would most likely stay there. With the exception of silkies, all my chicken breeds have preferred roosting, the higher the better. The nest box squatters are mostly juveniles and some old lazy girls. The problem with yanking them out of the nest boxes and putting them on the roosts at night, is that my roosts ran side to side. There were 2 to 3 roosts in each coop. My roosts are not attached to the coop walls, rather they are supported by these 2×4 hangers. The boards can be lifted out for coop cleaning and egg collection.
Because my coops had open fronts, we were not able to install the roosts front to back so we had to put them side to side.
That means we could not walk inside the coops without taking the roosts down. Michael could squeeze under, but my old body doesn’t bend that way.
Then we decided to insulate the coops and close in the fronts for temperature control and noise abatement. Now I had a solid wood surface to attach my hangers and roosts! I could deal with the problem of non-roosting birds!
I can walk in, yank them out of the nest boxes and put them on a roost!
Here is Judge Judy inspecting my work on Coop#3, our largest coop. She is one nosy girl for sure!
The first night was a bit chaotic. Some of the birds were too afraid go inside, choosing to roost on the plumbing, outside in the cold. They were swiftly scooped up and put inside, on a roost.
Some chose to sleep on the floor. I put them on roosts as well.
Some got yanked out of nest boxes and put on roosts.
Today we finished retrofitting the final two coops. Of the 53 chickens who inhabit five coops, 10 were not on roosts tonight. I got everybody in the right place quite easily. I love finally having the roosts running the direction that makes it more convenient for us! We also gained several additional feet of roosting space. Note to self: This doesn’t mean getting more chickens.
With the roosts moved, I now had to figure out where to put the feeders to keep them from getting pooped on. With the fronts closed the feeders now fit perfectly on a hook on the inside of the doors! When the doors are closed they are the right height for the chickens to reach. They are also easier to fill now. I don’t have to climb in the coops with buckets of feed.
So, the moral of the story is, keep working on your chicken coop until you get it right. Oh, I just noticed how sloppy the inside of that door looks. Maybe we should paint the insides of the coops and hang curtains?
It’s what Nicole would do if she had chickens.
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Chicken Coop Cheap in Valley Springs, South Dakota
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Valley Springs South Dakota" 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 Valley Springs South Dakota chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Valley Springs, South Dakota With the big rise in chicken keeping there has been a similarly huge increase in the array of poultry paraphernalia for sale. Poultry housing is a situation in factor. It's likewise a classic example of the excellent old bandwagon being got on as various potential fowl real estate experts market an array of holiday accommodation asserting to be the suitable solution to your chicken real estate requirements. Frequently the rate looks eye-catching, the house looks attractive, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look appealing. Undoubtedly they know a quality chicken house when they see one? There are numerous inexpensive as well as horrible coops flooding the market. I understand this as I've checked a variety of them in the field, as well as seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed pail appeared. The result was nothing but a costly pile of fire wood as well as a small flock of bemused and also currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Necessities in Valley Springs, South Dakota
Usually these standardized designs are constructed of quick grown up lumber - come the initial decline of rainfall they swell, leaving you either blockading a doorway that won't close, or ripping the door furnishings off in a vain effort to launch the squawking inhabitants. The very first warm and comfortable day suggests the lumber dries out as well as splits, the felt roofing bubbles and boils, and come nightfall the hens refuse to go in. This is not because of their disappointment at the decrease of their once eye-catching home but because the hovel is now a place for, as well as probably crawling with, the chicken keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add on the fact that it said on the blurb that it would match 4 huge hens when that stocking thickness was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and what are you entrusted? A number of hinges as well as some kindling. A good coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you choose for a totally free standing house or one with a run attached. Presuming you are ranging your birds in a big space and the pop opening door allows sufficient for the type you keep, then the major demands of housing boil down to three factors which will define the number of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and also ventilation. A lot of types of chicken will perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch ought to ideally be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off edges so the foot sits pleasantly on it. The perch must be more than the nest box entry as chickens will certainly also normally look for the highest point to perch. A perch lower than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they create the most poo) leading to stained eggs the list below day. They shouldn't nevertheless be so high off the floor of your house that leg injuries can occur when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens require about 20cm of perch each (in little breeds this is undoubtedly much less), plus if more than one perch is mounted in your home they must be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their next-door neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Preferably your home ought to have a the very least one nest box for every 3 birds and also these must be off the ground and in the darkest area of the house. Your house must have adequate ventilation: without it after that condensation will build up every evening, even in the chilliest of weather condition. Realize, ventilation deals with the principle of cozy air leaving with a high space attracting cooler air in from a lower void - it's not a set of holes on other walls of your house and at the very same degree, this is what's referred to as a draft. If you have a house with a run affixed then the factors above are still real, yet you should likewise take into consideration the run dimension. The EU maximum legal stocking thickness for a cost-free range bird is (and let's face it, one of the motivations for keeping some chickens at home is perhaps enhanced or far better well-being) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m made even. Take a close consider a few of the deal residences - it could well be your home has the ideal perches, correct ventilation as well as adequate nest boxes for a sensible 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 claiming goes, "you get exactly what you spend for". You may believe you've got a deal, yet you and also your group could rue the day you did. Acquisition the best house as well as it will last for a couple of decades, if not longer provided the proper therapy. Ultimately your poultry and your chicken keeping experience will be a lot the far better for it.coops chickens
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