Raising Chicken Tips: Requirements for Building a Coop
A coop is what you normally call a chicken’s house. It’s their kingdom! A hen’s castle. So you have to make sure to keep their house maintained at a four star accreditation for this will help the chickens grow healthy and happy. Therefore, to keep it the way it should be, there are specific requirements to cope up with to build a coop that will satisfy both you and your chickens. You, the poultry owner, of all people should understand this.
Requirement #1
Regarding its design, the coop must be secured from any kind of predator. Every single angle in the pen – sides, below and above, must be structured to withstand the wrath and longing of predators who are always on the lookout for a free meal. When selecting a wire mesh, be sure it is the right one. Predators are more than one. They scour within the area of your coop unnoticed just waiting for the time when they can attack. You have to make sure that the coop is impenetrable because some predators like raccoons just reach out for their prey, easily.
Requirement #2
In connection with requirement number one, this is a continuation. Aside from predators, you have to secure the coop from those nasty rats. They burrow through the ground and come up from below. If the coop floor is not blocked, these rodents will slip into the hen’s quarters. Rodents are attracted to the food you’re giving your chickens and the droppings they excrete.
What’s more devastating is that these pesky rats love eggs. So whenever laying season comes, they gather too. Want to get rid of them? Good idea. But prevention is better than cure. That is why preventing them to come into the pen is better that getting rid of their presence completely. All you need to do is construct a floor within the pen, otherwise, bury a fence about 12 inches deep around the hen’s house. Be sure that the materials you will use for the fence and the floor is thick or hard enough for them to impossibly bite through.
Requirement #3
The way you build your coop must not be drafty or breezy. Subsequently, seasons will change and so would the weather. That is why; your coop must be able to endure any kind of natural effects.
Requirement #4
Roosting poles must be provided for your hens to slumber. It must have an approximate 2-inch wide rounded edges. You allot an 8 to 10 inch space between every bird. Put nest boxes to encourage egg laying. One nest box is equivalent to three to four chickens. Situate the boxes inches above the ground. Do not let it touch the soil. Place these nesting boxes somewhere private where no one can bother them while they’re doing their thing. Safety is the very first policy one should follow.
Requirement #5
Your coop must be roomy. Spacious. You have to allot at least 3 square feet for every bird. There should also be space where the feeder and the waterer can hang to which is 7-8 inches above the ground.
Requirement #6
The coop must be accessible for the owner’s sake ONLY. Predators and rodents not allowed. Easy accessibility can help you clean the coop so that bacteria and bugs do not fester.
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