Raising chickens

[RonMexico]

I'm all about new experiences, so I decided I'm going to build a chicken coop and buy a few 8 week old chicks from Craigslist for $3 each. I will be using scrap lumber I have around the house to build a chicken coop and I hope to keep the cost at or under $100.
I've been reading online stories but I trust you all on here, any advice would be great.

Btw: I read the chicken shortage thread on here but Tyson chicken is still $2.40/lbs on base, I am not looking to save cash, just get a new experience/skill.

[Great-Kazoo]

At that age don't expect any eggs till next year. Give them room to roam (free range) unless there's a lot of cats in the hood. Regarding the shortage, it hasn't caught up with the supply chain. If you think those cluckers in the store are "fresh" think again. Milk is usually 2 weeks from processing before it hits the store.

[Wulf202]

If you can get on Craigslist and find a free dog house to use as a hen house. Dont forget roosting poles and a door to collect eggs. Heat lamp. Start em at 95 degrees and decrease 5 degrees a week. I double up with a radiant heater or a second bulb

[DFBrews]

When thwy start laying incorporate Oyster shells into their diet to keep the egg shells from getting thin

[Irving]

Look up a chicken tractor if you haven't. You may not go that way, but good knowledge either way. Also, you can have my doghouse.

[Wulf202]

Made my chicken tractor out of an old table found next to the dumpster.

[Delvehound]

Check out Backyardchickens.com, you'll find articles devoted to just this. If your birds are 8 weeks as of now, expect eggs around early September. They start laying around 18-20 weeks. Only add oyster shell if the eggs are actually getting thin, otherwise it can cause other problems. You'll want to feed them starter / grower feed until they start laying, then switch over to layer feed. Give your birds at minimum 2sq ft in the coop and the run size depends on how you plan to raise them, if they're getting out in the yard everyday to free range, then their run can be around 3-4sq ft per bird, if not go bigger on the run size. I have 4 birds, the coop is 3x4', and the run is 4x8'. I let them in the yard to eat weeds, bugs, and stuff about 1-2 times / week for a few hours, while I'm drinking my morning coffee on the patio. Supervision is important, for hawks, cats, and dogs..

They're pretty easy to raise and care for honestly. If you plan on raising them for meat when they stop making eggs (~3 yrs), try not to get too attached. lol

Since you're building your coop , check out the "deep litter method", and there's pics out there of feeders and waterers using 5 gal buckets, that are pretty slick.

Hope this helps, good luck!

[RonMexico]

Thanks for all the help! I'll post photos by the weekending my setup. Out family was able to make a tractor coop with three bird for under $100. We are stoked and the little guy is having a ton of fun.

[clodhopper]

Do some thinking about your coop construction. The common thought is to build it from scrap because ... it is just a coop, right? A slapdash coop gets to be a pain to maintain, unless you are out in the county and a stinky coop is a non-issue. I built my first coop from scrap, recycled building materials and such. It was on wheels and the run was PVC and chicken wire so we could roll it around the yard. That proved to be a huge pain as if left in one spot for more than a day, the chickens would strip the grass to the nubs and once the house was moved all the chicken crap had to be cleaned up or the dogs would chow down on it. Needless to say, it got parked in the corner of the yard and stayed there. Daily maintenance beyond collecting eggs proved to be cumbersome. I installed a water system with a 5 gallon bucket which will last about a week with 5 chickens and a big enough food system to last a week also. I then added a heater on a thermostat for winter and a timer with coop/run lights to extend the day and keep them laying. I use one of the weather station type thermometer with the remote, put the remote in the chicken coop and during winter you can keep tabs on the inside temp. I target about 50 deg, but really you only need it above freezing. 50 deg seems to keep the coop drier, keeps the condensation down.

Bottom line.... the coop was pretty clever in design but by the time I kept tacking on more things to make my life easier and solve problems, the coop ended up being difficult and had several features that really aggravated me. Scrapped the whole thing and started over. Building the new coop as a permanent structure with a roofed over run. Fully arranged HVAC system with heat, exhaust fan, separate timers on run lights and coop lights, automatic coop door, control panel box and more. I learned a lot from the first coop and when beginning design for the next one, started with a list of what most annoyed me from the first one, added what is critical, then added would be nice features, and went from there.

If you are expecting to just keep a busy lifestyle with job/kids/etc. and that adding chickens are no big deal, plan to invest a bit in the coop to make your life easier.

[Sawin]

Subscribing... my wife wants to do this at her dad's place.