In my typical "figure it out as I go" style, I bought the chicks yesterday thinking I had plenty of time to finish cleaning out the old coop, do some minor repairs and build a fence around the yard.
After doing some research, however, I'm finding that there's more to it than that. The old coop is in sadder shape than I previously realized.
Look at the pictures of what I'm starting with and then compare that to the beautiful coops on display at Backyard Chickens)
Things a coop needs that the old coop doesn't have:
- solid/continuous walls that will keep predators and weather out and chickens in
- roost/roosts
- a poop board to go under the roost
- floor/bedding material
- nest box(es)
- human sized door
- chicken sized door
So the questions now are:
- Do I have enough supplies on hand to do extensive remodeling of the existing coop or to build a coop from scratch? Can I do either task with minimal help?
- If building new, should I build a permanent coop or a moveable coop, also known as a chicken tractor?
The girls won't be ready to live outside for at least a month. I do have some time to figure out a plan and execute it.
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