Chicken houses or coops have become widely accepted as a good compliment to any backyard. A well thought out chicken coop is attractive to look at, functional and easy to maintain. However a Chicken house which can offer all these is rarely found, especially if it is bought in a market. Often people do not realize that a chicken coop absolutely needs to be exacting to their specifications and so a bit of sweat is needed to make one which can make the owner proud. This article is to make you aware of a few factors that are critically important for making a chicken coop. Some of them you will know others might be a real eye-opener.

The size of your poultry: A no-brainer, the size of your poultry needs to be deciding factor in your investment here. However how poultry size determines the coop size is surprisingly almost a mystery. Your chicken house absolutely must provide atleast 4 square feet of space per bird so that they may live comfortably. So if you have 5 birds then the size of your coop should be at least 20 square feet.

The weather where you stay: Now here things get tricky. The weather is determinant in your chicken coop design because if you are living in a cold and damp area then it must be insulated enough to protect the chicken from the drafts that might occur, or if you reside in a rainy area then you will need to provide some elevation, in a humid place plenty of ventilation etc.

Predators: By far the most nagging problem that poultry farmers face. Your chicken house must be designed to thwart any attempts by predators, whether land or air based.

Chicken house interiors: Your job just doesn’t end with making a wooden construct in your backyard.

The interior of the coop needs to provide plenty of moving space, must be properly insulated, and above all must have nesting space for the chicken. A good idea is to have the coop floor with sand or saw dust as chickens love taking sand baths. These should get you started. There are many intricate things that must be taken into account also.

You can read much more about how you can design a great chicken house on my page. Your Chicken house need not be something impossibly perfect; such thoughts can often seem intimidating and should shunned aside. What must be kept in mind are your requirements and the issues that you are or potentially will be facing. Hop on to my chicken coop page. where I have discussed in great detail how you can make a good cheap chicken house and also a few important things you should know about keeping and raising chicken.