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| Confined chicken coop |
Know what you need
There is no ‘perfect, one-size fits all chicken coop’. That is where
your needs and limits determine the final design of your chicken coop. There are
a few things you need to consider before jumping into building or purchasing a
coop:
1) Local
bylaws. Municipal by-laws exist in every town/city and may entail a
detailed plan for coop construction. The coop design and construction may be
limited by the number of chickens or possible locations (such as, not close to
your neighbour’s bedroom!). Here is the pdf for the local by-laws of Johannesburg (and the surrounding area), chickens are on pages 60-62.
2) Location.
Where would you like to have your chicken coop? Against a wall, which may
provide one of the walls of the coop? Or out in the open, which requires a
sturdy foundation. The amount space available in the yard may limit the amount of chickens you can keep and the final size of
the coop.
3) Weather.
You need to build a coop that can withstand your climatic conditions. If you
live in areas with cold winters or hot summers it may require some insulation to
limit the effects of temperature on your chickens inside. Heavy wind and rains
will require sturdy and rot-proof construction.
4) Mobile
or stationary. Mobile chicken coops (known as tractors) assist with
confining chickens for protection or for pasture management. Stationary coops
remain in place as permanent shelter for chickens and are sturdier than mobile
coops.
 |
| Mobile chicken coop |
5) Predators.
Identifying possible chicken predators will also assist with designing a safe
chicken coop. Animals such as birds of prey, foxes, mongoose, baboons, monkeys
and large wild/feral cats each require certain alterations to the coop in order
to keep them out.
6) Chickens.
The amount and breed of chicken is directly correlated to the size and space
needed in the coop. More chickens or larger breeds necessitate larger coops.
7) Purpose.
Chickens acquired for egg purposes (layers) will have different needs and
different coop designs than chickens kept for meat (broilers). Hens are smaller
and require nesting boxes, whereas cocks are larger and noisier (might affect
where you are allowed to construct your coop according to by-laws). If you want
to breed and raise chicks, additional housing needs to be provided for broody
chickens, incubators, chick raising houses and hens with chicks need to be
separated from the rest of the flock for safety.
Coop Necessities
All chicken coops must have the following in order to have happy
healthy chickens:
1) Enough
space for each chicken
The space needed for each chicken depends on their age and
breed. The more space your chickens have, the happier and healthier they will
be. Space allows members in the low ranking of the pecking order to escape
bullies and hide. If you have several cocks, large coops allow each of them to have their
own space and boss around their hens without being it one another’s faces and
less fighting will occur. Additional space allows chickens to scratch and be
occupied until they are let out for the day to minimise pecking.
Coop dimensions
Breed
|
Coop with run/yard*
|
Confined coop*
|
||
m2 per bird
|
Birds per m2
|
m2 per bird
|
Birds per m2
|
|
Heavy
|
0.37
|
3
|
0.92
|
1>
|
Light
|
0.27
|
3
|
0.70
|
1.5
|
Bantam
|
0.19
|
5
|
0.46
|
2
|
* Measurements based on fully grown chickens (21 weeks +)
Based on Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow (2010).
Based on Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow (2010).
2) Good
ventilation
Chickens have a higher respiration rate than most other animals and
good ventilation is important. Doors and windows provide ventilation for the
coop. This limits the build-up of disease organisms, ammonia and/or dust from
the litter, skin and feathers of the chickens. Good ventilation prevents respiratory
problems. Ventilation also helps to regulate the coop temperature and windows
allow light into the coop. Doors can also be fitted with mesh wire or window
screens to increase ventilation during the summer months. Windows
can be made to slide or tilt to open and close during bad weather.
3) Free
from drafts
Drafts inside the coop will affect chicken health, especially if the
chickens have gotten wet during rain. Drafts blowing onto wet chickens will
make them ill. So limit drafts in your coop design or adjust your coop with
panelling to minimise drafts.
4) Stable and comfortable temperature to shelters chickens from wind and sun
This goes hand in hand with good ventilation, extreme cold or hot
weather will have adverse effects on chickens. Chickens prefer temperatures
between 20-25oC (70-75oF) and casualties may occur when their bodies exceed
temperatures of 35oC (95oF). The coop temperature range should preferably stay between 5-28oC (41-82oF). Additional shade can be provided by free-standing shelters
on the property (known as range shelter and can be a roof on posts with a water
fountain.) Chickens should be able to shelter from rain as well, especially in the afternoon. Chickens should not be allowed to go to bed wet, else they
become ill.
Note: Body temperature and ambient temperature are not equal (i.e. 35oC
outside does not mean your chickens’ bodies are at 35oC).
5) Protects
chickens from predators
Chicken coops can be raised 0.5-1 meters from the ground to limit
access by predators. Raised coops also prevent rodents from nesting under the
coop. Chicken runs or confinement with fencing allows additional protection of
birds from daytime predators. Flying predators or those with opposable thumbs
(monkeys, baboons and some unsavoury Homo sapiens) will need to be kept out by fencing the roof of the run
as well and the doors/windows need to be secured with locks. Posts and fencing can be
buried to limit predators from digging underneath the fence.
 |
| Permanent chicken coop |
Chicken maturity; the amount, size, age and production capacity of egg
laying pullets is affected by the amount of total daytime light they receive. Eight
to ten hours of daylight is sufficient for healthy chickens.
7) Provides
adequate roosting space
Chickens roots naturally at night on tree branches. Roosting maintains
correct body posture and keeps chickens away from droppings. Light breeds will
be able to fly up and reach high roosting perches whereas heavier breed will require
roosts lower to the ground. Chickens should have adequate roosting space to
rest peacefully. Perches can be 5-6 cm in diameter (2-2.5 inches) for regular chicken
breeds and 2 -3 cm (0.8-1.2 inch) for bantams. Each chicken should have 25 cm (10 inches) of perching space. Larger breeds do well with 30 cm (12 inches).
8) Enough
clean nesting space for chickens to lay eggs
Nest boxes should be darker than the surrounding coop where hens feel
safe and away from prying eyes. Nests allow for easy collection and straw or
pet bedding reduces the chance of eggs being broken. You should supply one nest
for every four hens. (Although there are two nest boxes, our chickens all
prefer to lay in the same nest and will queue to do so J). Nest boxes should be higher than the surrounding coop and make sure that they are waterproof. Special nest-boxes can be designed with a double floor. The top one has nesting material and a grate, the bottom floor is slanted and directs the eggs away from the chicken when they are laid to keep them clean.
Nest box dimensions
Breed
|
Width, cm (inch)
|
Height, cm (inch)
|
Depth, cm (inch)
|
Heavy
|
40 (16)
|
40 (16)
|
35 (14)
|
Light
|
35 (14)
|
40 (16)
|
35 (14)
|
Bantam
|
30 (12)
|
35 (14)
|
30 (12)
|
9) Clean
feeders and water fountains
Clean feed and water is essential to all animals. Please refer to my
Feed & Water article for complete information.
 |
| Basic chicken coop |
10) Easy
to access and clean
Coops should preferably be a comfortable human height. This makes
access to eggs, feed, water, chickens (for health checks) and easier cleaning…
something we didn’t do, I always end up with a kink in my back J after cleaning.
11) Will
not flood or become mucky when it rains
You don’t want your chickens to wash away neither should mud be tread
into the coop by humans or chickens. It makes for unsanitary conditions.
12) Litter/bedding
Pet bedding, chopped straw and wood shavings are placed on the floor of
the coop and under perches. This helps to keep coops clean, as they stick to
manure and are easier to sweep. Bedding, or litter, also absorbs excess
moisture, provides some insulation and cushions chicken feet. A good source of coop litter is well-dried, untreated (by chemicals) lawn
clippings. A good layer of litter (5 cm or 2 inches) can be added under perches
to compensate for the increased droppings. If you like; you can install a tray system to collect droppings under the roosts (which take the most hammering as chickens do most of their dropping-business at night) and this will make for easy clean up.
Optionals
Pop hole/chicken door
A wide chicken-sized door can be added to the coop for chicken-friendly
access and to keep out larger animals (dogs or goats). It also reduces drafts
and can be easily automated.
 |
| Confined chicken coop with pop hole |
Automations (doors, windows, fans, lights, electric fencing)
With the advent of modern technology; windows, doors and lights can be
set to automatically open or turn on depending on the amount of light captured
by their sensors (or “eyes”). Doors will open at dawn and close at dusk after
chickens have entered the coop to roost for the night. Windows can open and close when
temperatures fluctuate to control the coop environment. Fans can be installed
for additional ventilation and temperature control, whereas electrical fencing
can scare off potential predators.
Rain water collection
If you design your coop with a slanted roof (to prevent pooling and direct water away from the doors) you can
add a gutter and water collection tank to catch any rain from the roof. The
water, which is clean and fresh, can be used to supplement the chickens’ water need or
used in the garden.
Edible bedding
Some of the litter in the coop can be substituted with edible straw
(such as wheat, rye, oat, buckwheat or even alfalfa). This provides additional
nutrition to the birds (green manures can be dried for fodder) and gives
chickens something to do till the coop door opens.
Compost
Droppings and litter can be added to the compost heap. After it has decomposed,
chicken manure is invaluable as fertiliser for vegetable gardens.
Basic Coop Designs
Here are some illustrations and brief explanations to some basic
designs for your chicken coop. Alternatively pre-made coops can be purchased or
Wendy-houses/sheds can be re-purposed to house chickens.
Below is a design for a stationary chicken coop. It provides permanent shelter and can be outfitted with a rain water harvesting tank.
Here is another stationary coop design, known as a chicken tractor. It is more suited to a small garden or a small flock.
 |
| Basic Stationary Chicken Coop |
 |
| Stationary Chicken Tractor |
The stationary chicken tractor can be modified to sport wheels or skids and can be moved manually or by draft animals. This system allows limited chicken grazing, to prevent them scratching a garden to dusts and forms part of a farm’s pasture management.
 |
| Mobile Chicken Tractor Henmobile or Eggmobile or EggCart |
A pre-made coop from the Omlet range (www.omlet.co.uk). They have all-kinds of shapes, sizes, stationary and mobile coops is bright colours. Omlet also provides housing for other pets (hamsters, guinea pigs and rabbits) and other animals (bees).
 |
| The Omlet Eglu range of pre-made chicken coops |
Last Notes
No chicken coop need be plain, boring or an eye-sore. A little bit of paint and
some creative thinking can turn a coop into a garden show piece. The Internet
is bursting with all kinds of coop designs; from simple ones like I have here
to brightly coloured, massive mansions with pillars and terraces! One of the
blogs I am following: The Garden Roof Coop, and the Backyard Chickens website is a good place to start looking for
some cool and practical coop designs.
 |
| Large chicken coop with run |
Additional measurements and a similar 'basic stationary coop' design can be found in Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow (2010).
Previous articles in this series
Food & Water
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