Without any doubt, a chicken backyard without a chicken coop housing the said chickens is either an exercise in futility or a really big backyard. If you own a ranch somewhere out of the country, the latter’s probably the case, but if you’re like everybody else, then you probably have a small, narrow excuse for a backyard at your disposal. If that’s the way things are, then you will need a coop to house your birds.
The one thing to remember is that you’ll be keeping your chickens here. They’ll eke out most of their lives inside your chicken coop, so you can consider this structure as the chickens’ room. With this in mind, you have to make sure that you put a lot of care and effort into making the chicken’s room as livable and comfortable as possible.
Some of the things you have to take into consideration when planning your chicken coop / housing for chickens are:
1. Make sure you have enough room for all your chickens.
This is extremely important. Your chicken house will be overcrowded if you don’t plan on how to fit your chickens. The rule of thumb here is: it’s better to have a coop too big for your chickens than a coop that’s too small to accommodate your chickens.
2. In relation to that first point, you want to make sure that your coop doesn’t eat your backyard space.
Make sure your chickens have enough space without compromising the space your family can use, lest people start considering the chicken coop housing for the odd member of the household.
3. You also need to know about the possible chicken predators in your area.
See, these chicken coops house chickens for more reasons than just comfort – these also serve as the last line of defense between your chickens and the big bad world. Who knows when a wandering hawk might prey on your birds?
4. Make sure that your chickens have ample spots where they can eat and drink.
Also, clean out the chicken coop daily. An unclean chicken coop will be the death of your birds, so this is very, very important. These chickens can’t do it themselves you know!
Just keep these tips in mind when you start planning your chicken coop, and you’re guaranteed to keep your chickens happy and healthy throughout their stay with you.
Chad B. is an advocate for backyard chicken care and has been involved in raising chickens since he was little boy back in 1986. Find out more about planning for and building a chicken coop house in your own backyard plus get a free 10-lesson chicken raising mini-course by visiting Chad’s site at – http://RaisingChickenSecrets.com
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