Chicken coup plans

[Wannabe]

Hey y'all, Don't fall off your lounge chair laughing. But the wife has a wild idea about raising chickens. Sooo, with that said, can anyone direct me where to get plans for a chicken coup. I'm not the intuitive type and have a learning disability. Therefore, I need plans for a chicken coup with a complete materials list, cut diagram and instructions. Can anyone help? Incidentally, this is not a joke. Thanks guys and keep the A.C. running. I live in Lexington and zoning calls for no more than 4 chickens permitted.

 

[creasman]

My wife had that same idea a few years ago. I got plans from Catawba ConvertiCoops - Urbane Coop Plans for Urban Chickens. We had three chickens and the coop worked fine -- could have easily accommodated a fourth. It lends itself to being moved every couple of weeks to give them a fresh spot to scratch, which is a good idea if you have the space. It does take two people to move it as designed.

 

[Brantnative]

Lot's of them for sale on Craigslist. It's a cottage industry.

 

[Jeff]

You can buy a coop. They're a PITA to make.

Amazon.com : chicken coop

Chicken coop - farm & garden - by owner - sale

3 ft. wide x 4 ft. deep x 6 ft. high hen house for sale 2 nesting boxes 1 interior perch Rear...

raleigh.craigslist.org

Lodge Chicken Coop - farm & garden - by dealer - sale

VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT: www.urbannorthern.com IN STOCK Our Lodge style coop comes in Limited Edition...

raleigh.craigslist.org

 

[Tom from Clayton]

Whatever you build make sure you protect them from the neighborhood dogs. Wife and I had a dozen or so many years ago and the neighborhood german shepard got into them one night and killed every one. He went right through the hardware cloth I had over one of the windows.

 

[mgreene93]

4 hens should produce all the eggs you need. I have 3 hens and a rooster (I live in the country). The hen produce all the eggs we need.

 

[KenOfCary]

I mentioned the idea of getting chickens to my mom who grew up on a farm in Indiana. She said "Don't do it - they are a mess to clean up after". Of course the kids on the farm always had the job of cleaning the coup. My only advice is just don't forget about this task and who's going to do it.

Our plans are still on hold.

 

[Gofor]

The neighbor had some chickens, and ended up buying a dog kennel (the one with a top cover,) to put the coop in to keep out the foxes and raccoons. Had to line the bottom with a piece of chain link to keep the varmints from digging underneath it, (Chicken wire also works, but not as well) but it made it easy to lock them up at night, as well as to stick a few broomsticks across it for roosts. if you keep the chickens in an enclosure, you may want to cover the bottom with gravel to make it easier to hose down the waste so you aren't tracking through it when you go to get the eggs.

 

[CrealBilly]

Whatever you do make. Make sure it as secure as you can make it. The run and coop both need to be secure. Tall (6') chain link fencing works pretty well. Bird netting on the top supported by 8' 2x4' in the center so you can walk in there and rat wire around the bottom. Finally a couple runs of electric fence wire at about 6 inches, 1 door and 3 foot off the ground helps a lot also. Snakes are another story... I'm still looking for a way to keep snakes out of the hen house.

 

[Joe Scharle]

I built this for one of my daughters. No plan, but general idea from Tractor Supply. Roof on nest box opens to get to eggs.
All good advice above. Good luck!

Opens outside of fence area for cleaning

Door into fenced area is raised from outside fence