Posted by Suzanne McMinn @ 5:06 am | Permalink
Chickens, In the Barnyard
Supplies: Landscape timbers to use for framing the hen house.
Welded fence wire and chicken wire. (Ignore the tomato stakes.)
The PLANS! (Scratched on the back of an envelope.)
(View 1–aerial. View 2–frontal.)
Dimensions of the chicken yard are to be about 18 feet by 10 feet. The hen house structure will be another 18 feet by 10 feet. The chicken yard fence will be made with welded fence wire and chicken wire along the bottom. The hen house structure will be made with barn wood up to three feet high and the top three feet will be made with chicken wire. Roof will be made of corrugated tin. Door to hen house made of wood and screen. Flooring made with wooden pallets and straw. (Pallets to be removable for cleaning and to let air circulate under the floor.) Wooden nesting boxes and straw, with doors to the outside for egg collection. A roost for handy access to nesting boxes. A ramp down to the yard. Satellite TV and internet to keep the hens entertained. A gate for access, and another gate to let the chickens out into the road. 
52 is building the chicken house. I’m a helper. I might bring him something to drink if he gets thirsty, or remind him that he’s cute if he needs some encouragement.
Not that we know what we’re doing. Advice?
This chicken house is, of course, for my as-of-yet non-existent chickens. But starting to prepare for the chickens makes them seem a lot more real. I’ve never had chickens before. And truth? I’m a little bit scared. I want chickens. But I don’t really know anything about how to take care of them. I’ve got a lot to learn.
