Getting Started with Backyard Chickens - Part 7

It has been a while since I shared about my experiences with backyard chickens.  Before I formed my first flock I read books, magazines, and various websites.  I thought I knew everything about chickens and their care.  Little did I know what I would discover over the years and even more since my last post three years ago!  There is no size fits all plan.

I decided that the chicken coop needed to be expanded so my dad and I took on the project to add a second level on the existing side and to double the lower level for more floor space.  We have built it with one rule, it must be done with free pallets.  I wanted to be able to get into the coop with my chickens and stand up.

We added a nesting box at the end beside a door I cut for the entrance.  All the doors are secured by wooden strips.  The nesting box, above on the right, has an opening so we can gather the eggs and a box beneath it with builders sand which provides the grit they need to digest food.  I did end up using PVC pipes for the door so it would be lightweight.  I added a second level to the new run  for a protected area and for a box to hold feed, grains, and extra supplies.

On the outside run I have one side that has solid wooden planks for some shade and then I have screens made of chicken wire on a pallet frame.  These lift off for me to clean out the run.

  

I was able to extend the height of the two feeders in the coop and make a weather proof roof.  I glued and nailed 2x2 pallet strips for the ramp to the nesting area.  

I made an in-coop roosting area with two different sticks to hold two rows of birds.  When my new flock was young they were all on one strip but as they matured I added the second one.

I found that leaves are the best bedding for the floor of the coop.  In the fall I collect leaves that folks put out on the road, looking for the bags that have been mulched.  I have a box area under the roost that holds the leaves but they eventually end up all over the floor of the coop.  I never have any odor in the coop due to the poop mixing with the leaves.  After a few weeks the leaves break up into very fine pieces and I gather them and put in the outside run.  After a few more weeks I take to be composted.

This is compost as I dump it on my raised beds.  I credit my beautiful crops to the chicken poop compost and our bees.