Chicken Coop Progress

            As you may have read the other day, we are getting chickens! If you happened to miss that post, you can read it HERE. I mentioned that we've ran into some snags...Those "snags" happen to be actually getting chickens. lol We've done our research and know exactly what type/breed of chicken we would like to get. However, we have been having a hard time finding anyone who sells them around where we live. We looked into ordering chicks from online sources and local companies (Tractor Supply and the like), but they have minimum orders of around 25/30 chicks. That's convenient and all for real farmers, but we just want 3 or 4 hens for our backyard. John contacted a local mini-farm and they were nice enough to let him know about a poultry and livestock Facebook group for our state. (Ah, the joys of modern technology, eh? :) ) So, the search for chickens still continues. In the meantime, we've (and by we I mean John) already started building a chicken coop!

            Now, I realize it's big leap (but not at the same time) to go from "getting green" to raising backyard chickens. I figure there has to be some of you out there that might be at least interested in this as well. Plus, in case it's not painfully obvious, I'm really excited about this venture! I love anything that has a relatively small start up cost, can provide my family with REAL, unaltered food, and possibly make us some money on the side as well.
            Without further ado, here is our progress on the chicken coop so far. It may not look like much and is definitely not pretty, but I think it will be a good starting point. We're planning on letting our future hens roam around the backyard during the day, so they will only be in here at night and whenever they need to lay eggs anyways.
            Our only expenses so far have been for hinges and hardware cloth (the wire netting on the bottom of the cage). All of the wood being used is scrap from our "well loved", weathered bench (which also happened to be free from a previous neighbor) and palettes John was able to get from work for free. So far our grand total is $15 and some change. Not bad, huh? Now we just need to get some damn chickens!

 

Materials

 

 He's making me nervous in that picture on the left. Is he making anyone else nervous?!

Middle & Right: Still needs some side walls, but the tall part is the back. That will be where the roosting bar is located. (aka The Chicken Bed) The shorter, front part with the openings will be where the nesting boxes jut out. (aka The Egg Laying Rooms)