Rusty Moose Chicken Coop Building Guide
We designed this coop five years ago, and we built it with a few features that are fun to talk about:
The structure is 8x8 with double barn doors that Ryan also built for us, and we did that with the intent of being able to open both doors and clean them out with a tractor bucket.
All ladders are hinged and flip and clip up.
All lower nest boxes are removable.
We also installed a 💩 droppings board in each coop for easy, quick daily cleanout. I hated having it drop on the pine shavings and us walking on it, adding unnecessary moisture to the coop, and not to mention the smell. 🙊 So 💩 boards to the rescue!! I scrape them every day into a bucket and walk it to the compost pile.
If you notice, we hang food but not water in the coop!!! Again, I don’t want added moisture in the coop!
There are a couple of windows... one is a glass front that faces the sunrise to support their natural laying cycles! The window on the sunset side is solid to support a good night's sleep.
I keep the windows only cracked open at night to keep a draft out (drafts will strip heat from their body), but allow only enough fresh oxygen for coop ventilation and not compromise their eggshell quality!!!
All roosts are BELOW windows, and all nestboxes are below roosts!
We have auto-doors that open and close on a timer, but we go out to each coop and make sure everything is secure and gather eggs to dissuade broody hens.
For security, we use all 1/4” galvanized hardware mesh (to keep weasels out), and ALL locks are equipped with carabiners because we have raccoons with opposable thumbs!
Each coop is locked tight each night like Fort Knox.
The runs are oversized with buried to keep them safe from digging predators like weasels, coyotes, dogs, etc. They’re also completely covered to keep the aerial predators out like hawks, owls, osprey, and bald eagles.
The only thing we’re missing is electric fencing around the perimeter to keep the bigger predators out like bears and big kitties.
I hope some of this is helpful for you, especially if you’re a first-time chicken keeper this Spring!! 🐣
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