Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!

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yorky

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #75 on: July 08, 2011, 10:22 »
Looks good yorky, I'd never thought of putting paper under the perch  :) a

It works well as long as you make sure that the hens can't get on to it, otherwise they just scratch it up.
Sets a low standard and fails to achieve it.

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OpiumEater

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #76 on: July 13, 2011, 21:09 »
I have an eglu Go with fox proof run within a compound that hubby is going to roof for me.



They then get to free range in the vegetable garden when I'm about.



When they're not too busy looking at themselves.

And sometimes they get to play on the lawn.




But since the fox attack I'm very nervous and only let them out when I'm in the garden with them  :(
Alice - Australorp
Bernadette - Barnevelder
Dora - Silver Grey Dorking
LilliBet - Cream Leg Bar

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ANHBUC

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #77 on: July 13, 2011, 21:14 »
Love to see happy hens.   :D
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OpiumEater

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #78 on: July 13, 2011, 21:20 »
They make me laugh so much, Bernadette is a bit pecked by Alice at the moment so just making her a jacket. Will try to get a picture of her with it on.

She was glorious with all her feathers, but not much of an egg layer. We call her the layers mate. Think she might be older than I was originally told.


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Ben_H

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #79 on: July 19, 2011, 13:18 »
View from the small mound of soil at the top end of our run.

21' x 9' run squeezing in all the currently available bit of space in the garden with a Green Frog Designs large chicken lodge for the girls.

I've reused trellis panels for the sides and used off cuts of or reused chicken wire up to 7' to keep my dogs out and (so far) the chickens in without clipping wings though the goldline used the trellis as a ladder on her first night and perched on the top of the wire. I then discovered that the pop hole had closed itself so hoping she was just looking for a safe roosting place.

i've incorporated a hedge within the bounds of the netting to give some shade and somewhere different for the girls to scratch around. They seem to like the hazel leaves for some reason and perch on top of the coop to get to them.

Behind the run in this picture is another area with the compost bin in it. When I have more chicken wire and timber in about a month this will become an extension of another 6' x 17' which will hopefully allow the grass to recover if I can alternate weeks or fortnights of use.

That said, if I can persuade the other half to lose a bit more garden I could bring that new bit out to 9' too, matching the width of the current section.

I'm also going to try and grow chickweed and fat hen for them to snack on. It will be interesting to see how quickly it grows and how long it lasts in the pen.
Run South view upload.jpg

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OpiumEater

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #80 on: July 20, 2011, 12:20 »
I love the hedge idea, mine loved to sit under ours, but can only get there when free-ranging.

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Ben_H

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #81 on: July 26, 2011, 07:21 »
The problem with the hedge is that they hide behind it when I'm trying to pick them up for a cuddle (not fully socialised yet). It's also giving me grief when I'm trying to poo clear. I have a number of very itchy hawthorn scratches across my back.  :(

The original idea was to lay the hedge this winter to allow it to thicken at the base however I'm now concerned about them trying to use this as a launch pad to get into my neighbours garden as the fence behind the hedge is only 6 foot rather than the 7 foot elsewhere and The laid hedge would be about 5 foot high midlands bullock style. I could lay it flat cumbria style and not bind it I suppose. At the moment they try to launch themselves from the top of the coop but the hedge is too tall for them to get over and to thick to get into.

Something I wasn't expecting was them eating the Hazel leaves. They seem to love sitting on the roof of the coop and munching away. The good thing is they seem to be keeping the squirrels away from the hazel nuts that have grown for the first time this year.

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ANHBUC

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #82 on: July 26, 2011, 12:59 »
Something I wasn't expecting was them eating the Hazel leaves. They seem to love sitting on the roof of the coop and munching away.. The good thing is they seem to be keeping the squirrels away from the hazel nuts that have grown for the first time this year

I wouldn't count my chickens just yet Ben, think it is too early for them to he harvesting the hazel nuts.  You will know when they are ripe!   :(

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Barnsley-Bill

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #83 on: July 28, 2011, 10:44 »
This is my run I'm making for my first go at keeping chickens, down on my allotment.

 


 

to the left of my run is a small river and to the right my garden
« Last Edit: July 28, 2011, 10:46 by Barnsley-Bill »

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joyfull

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #84 on: July 28, 2011, 11:27 »
Hi looking good however just a word to the wise - chicken wire is not fox proof nor is it mink proof - they will both chomp through that without a second thought, (I included mink there as you have mentioned the stream - I have had a couple of mink attacks in the past as I have a beck next to my house). We generally recommend welded wire mesh and I can recommend Hills of Devon for this - they deliver very quickly and at a good price. Also to prevent foxes digging under put your mesh into the ground by at least 8" preferably 12" or have a wire mesh skirt (same dimensions) flat on the ground at right angles to the sides (peg this down to prevent lifting). It would also be a good idea to mesh over the top or use something like clear and coloured onduline which will help keep them safe and stop the run getting waterlogged and muddy in winter  :D
Staffies are softer than you think.

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Barnsley-Bill

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #85 on: July 29, 2011, 00:18 »
I have today fitted all the chicken wire and doubled up to 6' and did as you say, set it 12" down from the posts  with 12'' at right angles then filled in with three inch of concrete then topped off with soil packed down.

My sheep dog Jud stays at my allotment and will chase and kill everything that gets in :).
Rabbits, rats, woodiesand all lol.

the only thing I'm worried about is the sparow hawks that vist now and again.
I have a very big barn owl  nesting in a box I made for him up a tree above the chicken coop I'm making, so I covered the roof in chickien wire just to be safe.

I have never seen a fox down there but I'm sure Jud would see them off if he saw one :).   

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joyfull

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #86 on: July 29, 2011, 06:58 »
large fowl breeds are generally too big for sparrow hawks but chicks and the very small breed of bantams may be considered a tasty snack  :(

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Carolf

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #87 on: July 29, 2011, 13:00 »
As you can (hopefully) see by the pics, the chooks have plenty of space to wander around.

My Westie likes to pretend they are not there but he is not fooling anyone lol
I also have 2 Jack Russells so the fenced off area is not only to keep the chooks in but the dogs out.  They just want to play with the chickens but for now they are kept separate even though the dogs spend most of the day with their noses through the holes in the fence while the chickens look at them with a haughty look  :D
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storme37

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #88 on: July 31, 2011, 19:37 »
heres our bit of land we keeping chickens on the chickens run free





« Last Edit: August 07, 2011, 21:59 by storme37 »
1 Salmon Faverolle cross, 1 dorking cockerel, 2 orpingtons, 1 speckle rock, 1 legbar, 1 croad langshan,2 brown lohmann

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Elcie

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Re: Post your Coop and Run set-ups here!!
« Reply #89 on: August 14, 2011, 22:58 »
The WIR at the back of my garden:




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