Like New Parents -- Videos of the babies!

Extending the Pen

We have been using a portable dog pen to help give our bunny some time outside of her hutch, and thought perhaps we could set up something to give the chickens a bit more room to roam.

When we first set it up, we did not have the doors as connectors, and simply place the birds over that we caught.  "Rose" was not interested in being caught, so she stayed in the coop.  Well,"Donna" had a fit!  She did not want to be separated, and she tried flying out of the pen and back into the coop.  We ended up put her back in the coop with the Buff.  They both settled down, and we figured out how to have the doors work as a connecting bridge.

The Chickens Have Arrived!!

YES, WE HAVE BIRDS!!
We ended up not getting hens that are already laying, nor ones that are all the same breed.  Once we got there, we saw a pen of various pullets, and decided that we wanted birds that could grow with us.  They are three-months-old and should begin laying around six-months-old.  We have a lot to learn and these young ladies will help us.

"Martha" (speckled) - Barred Rock

"Amelia," Cherry Egger, demonstrating how the waterer works;
"Rose" - Buff Orpington (background)

"Donna" - Australorp

Trying to capture moving birds in a still mode is difficult.

A better view of the Buff Orpington (right)

The coop next to our shed.
Note the frame on the bottom, on which is rests.
The birds love being able to scratch in the compost!

Change of Plans

Evidently, there was some confusion about our emails back and forth.
They did not have four Reds... so, we will go and pick up four layers that they have on hand.
We just want chickens now.

Bring on the Birds!

We just got back from vacation... but are excited about getting our chickens.
We are planning on going to Stacks Chicken Farm outside of Gettysburg, PA to pick up four already laying Reds.
YAY!!

It's the Little Things

OK, so we now have wood shavings, a waterer, and a feeder.  Thank you Tractor Supply!
We've waterproofed the entire coop with Thompson's sealer.
And, we've built a base frame that wraps chicken wire under the bottom.
We've received a great suggestion from a friend to put compost in the bottom base frame for the chickens to scratch around in.  That's the next step.

Coop Together -- DONE!!

One fully assembled coop!

Whoop, Whoop!  Give us a night and an electric screwdriver and one chicken coop is together!

There were a lot of pieces, but the instructions were great.  Overall, very happy with the coop.  Some places feel not as sturdy as we'd like, but overall it is nice.

The tray at the bottom of the roosting area has a metal, reflecting bottom.  Seems odd, though I guess it is more for easy cleaning than for the birds to look at themselves in the mirror.
The frame to that tray cracked when the pen wasn't square.  :(
Because it is mainly two boxes held together with a couple of screws it is best to not try and move it by yourself.

We want to somehow wire the bottom so no predators can dig under it.
We also want to waterproof it before getting birds in it.

Cindy demonstrating that the coop top opens fully