Broody Hen

Sorry no updates over the last week or so. I've been so busy with work and everything else that I haven't had time. I plan to have a good catch up on blogs sometime soon, so sorry for my lack of comments!

Clucking hen

 And as a follow on from my last post, no sooner had I moved the two silkies out of their arc, another hen went broody. She kept it up for a few days so I decided to separate her off from the others and put some eggs underneath her. The eggs are just from my chickens here, so no pure breeds, but it will be interesting what they turn out like!

Only seven eggs but she's only a small hen

Not a happy hen when I chuck her off her eggs for a drink and a feed for 5 mins a day!

Nearly two weeks in so hopefully my little girl will have some chicks to play with soon.

Chicken Weeder

I've been wanting to get my bantams out of their little ark for a while now. I want to have the ark in reserve in case I get a hen that goes broody, it also needs some maintenance and a new coat of wood stain. So I decided to build them another little coop.

My new "chicken weeder"

 I made most of it out of the old shed I housed my ex caged birds in over the winter so the cost were next to nothing. I had great ideas of making a "chicken weeder" that I could put between my rows of brassicas or fruit bushes and the two little chickens would weed them for me. Because of this I built the run and the coop separately so I could move them on my own easier.

Fenced off area for the bantams

In reality the outside run is too narrow for my liking and it would be awkward to get between plants, so instead I've fenced off a weedy area of the veg garden that I was leaving fallow this year for them to have a scratch about in. The coop is still an alright size for these little chickens (and there's a nest box area at the back) I think they'll be fairly happy in their new area and when the soft fruit is over they can go in there and keep the bugs down for me.
Not what I was thinking of doing originally but it seems to have worked out (like many best laid plans!)

Happy Hens

The electric netting and movable coop seems to be working really well.

You can see where they were the week before by the area of yellow grass to the pens left

 The hens get fresh grass every few weeks and a large fenced off area big enough to stop them from getting bored.

"Folding" then hens like this seems like a great way to keep them and although I know it's not true free ranged, but when foxes and uncontrolled walkers dogs are about, this is the next best thing! Everyone who see them says how healthy they look so all that fresh grass and insects must be doing them some good!

The Shed Is Dead

Long live the shed coop.

Not pretty. I bet the neighbours were pleased to see it go!

 Last night I moved the chickens from the horrible, blue tarp covered shed (pictured above) into their new, all singing, all dancing coop. Then I dismantled the old shed in the dark, hiding the tarp like it never happened.

Tonight I went to shut in the hens and they were all perched happily inside (having figured out the ramp in no time at all) and 6 clean eggs in the nest boxes. I was quite pleased!
The old shed didn't die in vain though. It provided shelter for these birds for more months than I'd care to admit and I might yet reincarnate the side panels into another little chicken coop - watch this space!

Another Chicken Coop

I need my garden back.

The chickens have done their job and removed the weeds for me but they're running amuck. I can't leave anything in the veg garden or it will get pecked to death.

I want to get these ex caged birds out into the field but the old shed they sleep in now (covered in a rather fetching blue tarp) won't move without falling down.

The frame work made up - notice the two "wheelbarrow" arms to help move it.

A new coop is the only answer. And me being me I can't just go and buy one, I have to make it (I should be making things for other people and earning money - but oh well).
I wanted this coop to be mobile so I could move it round the field with the electric netting, giving the chickens fresh ground every couple of weeks. I decided to make it like a large wheelbarrow with two arms one side and the wheels on the other. I still wanted to keep it off the floor like my other coop so I raised the base of it 16", which also gives the chickens a little shelter from the elements.

Carpentry "alfresco" in between showers

Building something like this always takes longer than you think it will, but by the end of today I managed to get it all clad, I would of had it stained as well if the heavens hadn't opened.

The coop clad in shiplap ready for a coat of stain (and a roof)

The nest box

Perches - I think I'll add another yet

All I need to do now is stain the wood and add the roof, hopefully the chickens should be in this by the start of next week. I love making a new chicken coop and I'm already planning my next one - A large ark for some more silkies!
The next little project will be an honesty box to start sellign some of the millions of eggs we seem to have at the moment. Does anyone else use an honesty box and are people honest when they take eggs or produce from it?

New Chickens

Well our smallholding has now got some animals! I think it's tradional that you start with chickens.

We've brought ten to start with, five legbars and five Welsummers hens all for egg laying with a view to breeed from them next year.

They're a little bit younger than I would have liked (one lot 10 weeks and one lot around 13 weeks) and come from two different batches with a bit of a size difference. Hopefully the pen is big enough to reduce fighting and keep them entertained until they even up in size. Moving them all into the new pen on the same day should help as well, they seemed fine today with no fighting at all. We have got a bit of time before they start laying but they should come into lay at the end of the summer and then they're be more likely to lay strongly through the winter (thats the plan anyway).

They seem to like their new coop but I've got a few nights of catching them to lock them up until they get used to it, tonight they gave me a right run around - I hope no one was watching!

Build Your Own Chicken Coop

I have a terrible habit of never buying anything I can make - and I can make a lot of stuff!

Over the years I've made lots of chicken coops (never bought one) and gradually refined the design on every new build, but each time there's always something else I'd change on the next one!

Here's my latest design for laying hens

Large coop for 8-10 birds

Front pop hole (still need to build he ramp to get to it)

I clad the coop in feather edge boarding as it was so much cheaper than shiplap. Also I think this will be easier to clean as with shiplap red mites and other nasties can hide in the tongue and groove where you can't get to them. With the roof I use bitumen sheeting as I've had problems with bugs getting between ply and felt when I've used that (I think this stuff works out cheaper anyway)

House raised off the floor

I now always like to make the coops 18" off the ground. This means rats and mice can't hide under it and also being that high it gives the chickens somewhere to shelter out of the rain.

Large door for easy cleaning

To make cleaning easy I made the whole front open so there's no excuse for a dirty coop! 

Good ventilation is important (it's not a pill box)

Large nest box with a good slope to discourage chickens jumping on it

 How do you build your chicken houses? And what would you change on yours/mine? Normally I always think I should have built it bigger!

We should be getting the chickens this week so I'll soon see what they think to it.