Coop life - backyard chickens

[mich1972]

So we adopted our girls in April and they bring us so much joy, eggs and beautiful fertiliser !!!! 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jason]

Many thanks for sharing @mich1972. Those eggs look fantastic!

You might like to share your tips and experiences with your backyard chickens on this very popular and long-running discussion - Anyone got backyard chickens?

Jason

[mich1972]

Oh great thanks Jason. Wasn’t sure where to post it and I definitely will 🐓🐓😊😊

[MitchellMc]

Hi @mich1972,

Some day when I own my own property I'd really love to have chickens. I noticed the herbs you have in with the chickens, do they not try to eat them or are herbs not really on the menu? I would have thought chickens would eat just about all green matter available, perhaps I'm thinking of goats though.

How many chickens do you have all together and is there an average amount of eggs you get per day?

Mitchell

[mich1972]

Hey Mitch. 
We have 6 beautiful girls. 
4 x Black Australorps

1 x White Leghorn 

1x ISA Brown 

The chook run is approximately 4 x 4 metres. We have a metal chook coop approximately 1.5 x 1 metre for the girls to sleep in at night and lay their eggs. The flooring is concrete slabs in the coop so it is rodent and fox proof when they are sleeping at night. The floor cover in the coop is Snoozle ( wood shavings ) and Charlie Charcoal ( absorbs the smell ) this is cleaned out monthly and straight onto the compost heap. No laying box , they lay underneath their perch ( wide piece of pine ) with heaps of chopped up lavender ( calming ) and fragrant 🤣
The fencing is Reo Mesh and Star Pickets. I purchased everything from work ( Bunnings ) 

The run was couch lawn they made sure they destroyed that 🤣 so now it is bales of straw and Charlie Charcoal. They work through it and it makes a beautiful compost for our garden !! 

I am growing Wormwood in the run. This is fantastic to repel Mites and fleas. I also chop into pieces and add to the coop. 

I have plenty of Italian Parsley in there , they don’t touch it. Also Elderflower , Mint and Tagetes. 

I grow lots of greens for them too but they are on the outside of the run 🐓🐓🥚🥚😍😍

oh and Mitch we normally get between 3-5 eggs per day 🐓🐓🐓 but because it has been so cold , only 2-3 eggs 

[mich1972]

Here is a list of plants I have growing in the Chook Run . 

Elderflower

Wormwood

Lavender

Rosemary

Oregano

Mint

Feverfew

Italian Parsley 

Tagetes

Nasturtiums

The Coop is under a Weeping Bottlebrush tree for protection and shade. I also have a Pomegranate on the other side. 

Greens are grown for the girls and given daily as a treat. 

I also grow a tray of Millet for them to chomp on. 

[prettyliving]

Cute!! My dream is to live on a bigger property and have chickens 🐓 When I was a kid we had them, they use to follow us around everywhere, they were the best! Enjoy 😊 

[MitchellMc]

@mich1972,

I thought we might like to cover how much a coop like yours would cost to construct as I trust we'll have plenty of interest in this topic. Something for up to eight chickens would be more than enough for most people I would think.

Do you believe a basic outlay of 4 x 88 x 88mm 2.4m F7 KD F4 DAR Treated Pine Premium Wrapped, 8 x Australian Builders 20kg Quick Set Concrete, 4 x ARC 4 x 2m x 6mm Reinforcing Ribbed Mesh, Rapidmesh 32 x 853 x 1800mm Galvanised Chainlink Side Gate, tie wire and a few rolls of Saxon 1200 x 100 x 100 x 1.25 5m Wire Mesh would be enough to get started?

Did you build this coop yourself? Are there any tips that you could give members that wished to build their own?

Mitchell

[mich1972]

Your Coop plans sounds really good Mitch. 

We used : 

Absco Fowl House 1.5 x 1.1 x 0.7. We choose a metal coop , easier to clean the walls. Doesn’t harbour mites like timber can. Has mesh panelling for good ventilation. 

600 x 600 x 38 concrete slabs for the floors. Slabs are the best as it protects the coop from foxes and rats trying to dig underneath to get in. 

1.8 x 1.05 Reo Light Mesh for the fencing. 
1.8 Star Pickets to attach the Reo Mesh. 
Roll of wire cut into pieces to secure to mesh to the star pickets. 
The holes are large enough for the girls to fit through, so we added a roll of Flower Mesh to the bottom of the fence, approximately 500mm in height and that is cable tied to the Reo. This was all purchased from Bunnings. 

The roof of the Coop is covered and protected by the rain with a thick rubber we purchased from gumtree.

[mich1972]

Letting the girls free range for the day 😍🐓