This is our little coop. Bull built it. He used clear corrugated siding for one wall and the door. This is to let in light and so we only have to stand on the back porch with a flashlight to see that the chickens are OK if we hear a commotion. Smart man!
These photos were taken last year when we first got our chickens. We have more chickens now, plus two turkeys, and three guineas. They will all be roosting in there this winter. Bull may have to build an addition... a wing?
But what I wanted to talk about today, was the free (or cheap) and EASY nest boxes.
I got the idea from my wonderful Uncle Whit. (Uncle Whit is not his real name. I chose it because I remember being amazed at all the amazing things he used to whittle from wood when I was a kid.) He just screwed five gallon buckets to fenceposts around his farm for his chickens to lay in. So that's what we did on the inside of our coop. Then we cut the lids so that there was an opening big enough of the chickens to get in and out, but we left a lip to keep the hay (and eggs) from falling out.
The hens like them and they were so much easier than building something out of wood. They are easy to clean too. Just pop off the lid, rake out the hay, hose them out if you see the need, and pop the lid back on.
I think we actually bought these buckets, but I have since learned to ask the nice folks in the bakery section of our local grocery stores for their empty frosting and bread mix buckets. They are usually already washed out for me and they come with air-tight lids (which will be important for the next project I will post about).
So there ya' go! The easiest, cheapest, coolest nest boxes I have seen. :D
Whiterock
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on Wednesday, September 14, 2011
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