My poor chickens. Neighbors started complaining that they were wandering around the neighborhood instead of staying in the yard, and they were getting unhappy, understandably. Not only were my neighbors unhappy, but my chickens weren't as safe as I'd like, since we live in town. They have a coop and a pen area. It's large enough for my brood, but I always feel sorry for them.
As I've alluded to in the past, I create pallet furniture. I have loads of free pallets from my brother's business. Instead of tossing them in a landfill, I recycle them into really cool couches, table, footstools, bars...signs, chandeliers, bottle openers...you get the picture.
With these two facts, of course I decided I could build a Chicken Mansion! er...coop...
Hubby and I started out by building a frame. The coop is 7' long and 5' wide. The height slopes from 7' in the front to 5' in the back. After the frame was constructed, I started cutting down pallets. Hubby decided I was responsible enough to use the reciprocal saw...that makes pallet cutting MUCH easier! Of course, I did have some pretty good blisters, but that was a small price to pay for the ease, perfection and quickness of the pallet dismantling process.
I started siding the coop at this point. I added a "window" opening and vent holes for light and breeze. These have been covered with chicken screen to keep predators outside. We happened to find a bifold door and a screen door in our basement; those have been repurposed into the front door and yard door in the coop. Inside I have already placed the shelf for the brooding boxes. I'm also in the process of working on the roosting bars. I found a really cool piece of wood in my pile that I will use as a swing.
Once the coop is finished, I plan to add a front and side yard to the coop. This should give my girls a good area to roam.
This has been a learning process, but also a lot of fun. Minnie, our big dog, enjoys the coop, so I've decided to use our scraps to build a matching dog house for her. As I get better at this, I'm going to be making small coops for people who want to save money and the environment using self sustainability and chickens in their backyard. I hope to work with a local agency that works with formerly homeless families, to help integrate the families into self sufficiency.
So, that's what's kept me busy lately!
As I've alluded to in the past, I create pallet furniture. I have loads of free pallets from my brother's business. Instead of tossing them in a landfill, I recycle them into really cool couches, table, footstools, bars...signs, chandeliers, bottle openers...you get the picture.
With these two facts, of course I decided I could build a Chicken Mansion! er...coop...
Hubby and I started out by building a frame. The coop is 7' long and 5' wide. The height slopes from 7' in the front to 5' in the back. After the frame was constructed, I started cutting down pallets. Hubby decided I was responsible enough to use the reciprocal saw...that makes pallet cutting MUCH easier! Of course, I did have some pretty good blisters, but that was a small price to pay for the ease, perfection and quickness of the pallet dismantling process.
I started siding the coop at this point. I added a "window" opening and vent holes for light and breeze. These have been covered with chicken screen to keep predators outside. We happened to find a bifold door and a screen door in our basement; those have been repurposed into the front door and yard door in the coop. Inside I have already placed the shelf for the brooding boxes. I'm also in the process of working on the roosting bars. I found a really cool piece of wood in my pile that I will use as a swing.
Once the coop is finished, I plan to add a front and side yard to the coop. This should give my girls a good area to roam.
This has been a learning process, but also a lot of fun. Minnie, our big dog, enjoys the coop, so I've decided to use our scraps to build a matching dog house for her. As I get better at this, I'm going to be making small coops for people who want to save money and the environment using self sustainability and chickens in their backyard. I hope to work with a local agency that works with formerly homeless families, to help integrate the families into self sufficiency.
So, that's what's kept me busy lately!
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