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How To “Avoid” the 5 Biggest Mistakes People
Make”Building Chicken Coops”
Here is a list of what can go wrong with your chicken coop when you “build a chicken coop” and how to make sure none of these things happen to YOU:
1. “Self Demolishing” Chicken Sheds
2. “Freaked Out” Chicken Syndrome
3. “Holey Moley” - “Cats got The Chicken in Its Mouth“
4. Stench Rot & Cleaning Access
5. “Auto” Air Conditioning RED Alert!
Your probably thinking what do all these terms above mean and what possible mistakes could you make building chicken coops. After all they are just simple structures.
Well surprisingly people often skip out on important parts of the structure because they think is a basic shelter and when they do they end up with the above list of problems.
Please let me explain further….
Getting these aspects of your chicken coop…
right will ensure your chickens have a healthy life and have less chance of going off there laying.
Unhealthy chickens won’t lay many eggs…
What is a self demolishing chicken coop…or shed.
It is when through no fault of you own you chicken coop can start to deteriorate either through poorly chosen materials or mysterious animals digging and prying away at you coops structure.
Often predators like foxes, dogs, or possums will keep pushing and prodding to get into the chicken coop and if you coop is not sturdy it will start to give over a period of time thus self demolishing…or continually in need of securing with extra materials or nails and eventually needing extra regular maintenance.
Freaked Out Chicken Syndrome or Nervous Chickens….
if you flock is very noisy and you hear loads of squawking going on it can mean the chickens are stressed, fighting or just plain freaking out all the time.
Why do they behave like this?
It has a lot to do with their chicken coop conditions and how happy and secure they feel. Where a lot of people go wrong is that they build the smallest coop because they think they will only have 3 or 4 chickens at the most. Then some little chicks come along unexpectedly, some eggs may have hatched accidently or you end up adopting a stray chicken, or unexpectedly someone gives you a bird and then all of a sudden your flock size has grown and over the years it has either virtually doubled or tripled .
The rule is you need at least 2 square meters per bird. When you introduce a new hen to a space smaller than that they will be rivalry especially more so if there is overcrowding. Hens have a pecking order but it can get very nasty if they don’t have enough space for each bird.
It can really be awful, when the chickens are stressed the fighting, and stress is horrible to see and the damage is even worse. Find out what you need in good plans to avoid these chicken melodrama’s click here for more info for plans that having good roosting and layout details
Holey Moley …The cats got the chicken-
Okay this happens if a cat gets in you chicken coop or a chicken gets out…How can a chicken get out or a cat get in! Holes!
What else can get in through the tiniest gaps that you can’t even see. RATS-SNAKES and sometimes possums and other animals.
You could spend weeks trying to weed our a snake or a rat..The rats eat the chicken food, bring lice, and the snake eat the chicken eggs and freak the chickens out, stressing them.
You can make this problem go away right from the start by executing a proper chicken coop plan that is built and constructed with square and good measurements making a snug and gap proof chicken coop!!
It will save hours of frustration in the long run!
Stench Rot:-
The most disgusting kinds of bacteria can live in chicken coops along with salmonella and others. This can live in there bedding or grow in damp areas of a chicken coop which is why it is important to clean out your chicken coop on a regular basis.
Most people aren’t away that design and construction is significant in cleaning out your coop so you don’t have those nasties. You see having strategically placed access doors, windows and hatches can make you life much easier!
Imagine there are designs that incorporate an opening roof or even raised floors so you can sweep out the poop into a wheel barrow for your garden fertilizer! How great is that..
Auto Air Conditioning - “Red Alert!”
Is all about ventilation..don’t have the right ventilation and you could end up with sick or dead birds.
The ammonia that can build in the chicken coop without the right ventilation could kill the birds on the other hand having to much draught in the winter can cause older birds to get sick and die.
If the coop is too damp there will also be other problems. How do you know where to put the ventilation and how to control it…well see the chicken coop plans available. Ventilation is all in the design and planning
This page will be updated even further shortly
Thank You!