Changes

Changes

August 1, 2021

 

(One of our latest changes: Home sweet home!)

As you can probably tell by the name of the post, the chickens have been undergoing some...changes. 

Firstly, ever since dear Washington passed, they chickens have been losing feathers. We had many suspicions as to what it could be- depression (due to Washington's death), bullying, mating, mites, free ranging, etc. Finally, we figured out the problem: The PVC bucket feeder we got for the chickens just after Washington's death (their small dispenser feeder was needed for the incoming chicks) were a bit restraining to their appetite. Basically, the chickens weren't so used to eating out of PVC pipes connected to a bucket. So they limited their food intake, which caused them to lose their feathers. We fixed this problem by getting rid of the old feeders (more on this coming soon!) and getting a bigger dispenser feeder. And so, their feathers have been growing back in! 

Secondly, our old coop completely broke down. (Personally, I think it was a run for our money. It only lasted a year, when it should have lasted for more!) The hardware cloth staplings ripped, the ramp into the run broke down, the paint fell off, the window shattered (though that might have been because the chickens pecked that window a million times!), the nesting box divider broke, the roofing came off, the nesting box door hinges rusted over (honestly, is that a thing?!?!?!), and the list goes on and on. Plus, the old coop had pretty bad access for cleaning. So, we finally decided to get a new chicken coop. (Because really- could our chickens live any longer in that coop??? That's why we had them temporarily free range all day for about a month.) We will recycle the old coop by housing new additions to the flock in there, so they can get used to the outdoors and our current flock. And, in case you were wondering, yes, the old coop will still be the face of my blog. So what are you waiting for? Come take a virtual tour of the chickens' new coop!

This is the run. We keep the feeder and water on some panels off to the side. The run includes fresh dirt (for the chickens to dig in), hardware cloth walls, a ladder up to the coop, and an extra roost (which the hens jump onto whenever Lafayette wants to mate with them!) What I love about this part is that the chickens have extra run space underneath the coop!

This is the coop door! It has automatic closing hinges, and a latch lock.

The funny thing about the location of the coop is that it is on concrete! As you know, when the sun hits concrete, it gets pretty hot. However, the coop is facing the west, so the chickens get full sun only towards evening, and it's cooler by then! Another thing I love about the coop is how many chickens it can hold- 8! (Good to know in case we get any more chicks. *Wink wink!*)

This is back of the coop, where the roosting space is located.

This is the inside of the roosting space. It has a roost, nesting boxes, and a circular opening to the ladder. (Can you see Lafayette taking a peek at us???)

Easiest ever access for cleaning!!! (Another one of my favorite things about this coop!!!)

This last part of the coop is very handy during rainy season- when the water fall on the roof, it slips down the grooves and off the roof, keeping the coop as dry as possible!

I'm so grateful for the recovery in our chickens, as well as the blessing of this coop! I don't think we could have made a better choice for a safe home for our chickens to sleep, lay their eggs, and do what they do. The new coop took the chickens a bit of getting used to, but I think these changes taking place are for the better!