Last year, a friend of mine named Emily decided she wanted to try raising chickens. She loved the idea of collecting fresh eggs every morning and it wasn’t long before her whole family became very emotionally attached to their little backyard flock. Especially her two preschoolers, Anita and Daniel. They spent hours every day watching the birds, feeding them and holding them. Sometimes, Emily would even catch them rocking and singing lullabys to their favorites.
Now, Emily had read that you don’t really need to house a backyard chicken flock, free ranging was fine. After all, she had a huge area for them to run around, far away from the nearest road. She felt smart when she thought of all the money she’d saved.
Then it happened.
One cold October morning she woke to the sound of her two young children weeping and knocking on her bedroom door. Their beloved pets lay in pieces all over the yard, vicims of a predator attack. Needless to say, it took a long time to calm the children down. They were completely crushed, far too young to understand the “circle of life” or food chains or any other rational reason for the tragedy. All Emily knew was she made a mistake.
It’s a shame that it took a sad event like this to make her understand the importance of providing a safe environment for your chickens. To be fair, Emily wasn’t good with tools and building things. She was intimidated by all the chicken house construction plans and “how to build a chicken coop” articles she read online. Even if she did find someone to help her, the sheer amount of time and effort involved overwhelmed her. Raising chickens was just a hobby for her family. There had to be an easier way.
After “the incident,” Emily started paying attention to the pre-built backyard chicken houses she saw advertised online. They had always seemed expensive before. But after pricing wood, shingles, nails and other supplies, she realized that having a ready-to-use coop delivered to her door was actually a sound investment in happy healthy chickens (not to mention peace of mind for her family.)
Things to consider when choosing a chicken house:
Whether you’re buying a backyard chicken coop or assembling a kit, the finished product should do several things.
1) Protect your chickens!
2) Be easy to clean and disinfect
3) Provide easy access to the eggs
4) Provide enough space per bird
5) Have windows and doors (light levels affect laying)
6) Keep the temperature and humidity level steady (you may need heat lamps if you live in a cold climate)
7) Take into account the height of the chicken using it (not all houses are suitable for all breeds of poultry)
Emily’s problem with predators never went away completely. Every now and then she sees a fox or raccoon sneaking around the yard. But now that she has a chicken house with maximum security, she doesn’t worry about waking up to crying children again. Her birds are safe and sound.
If you’re thinking of letting your birds run free because chicken house plans seem so complicated, please take a lesson from Emily. Even a simple fence is not enough (unless you can come up with a system which will keep predators from digging under it and killing the flock.) Consider purchasing security for your birds and peace of mind for yourself with a pre-built coop. It’s worth the investment.
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