Main Breeding Coop 

After the "Crazy Coop" we decided to expand. This time we wanted to make it right the first time so we thought about EVERYTHING before we got to building! (Yes, we built this one ourselves as well).

From people doors to chicken doors to "rooster rows", making chores as quick and convient as possible, while maximizing the space we had was our main priority. This coop has it all!!

Each pen consists of 2 male pens above, coop floor space for females below with collapsible roost bars, 4 nest boxes and a shelf for supplies as you're doing chores. There is a human door out to a covered run for each pen with a chicken door built in. To save space we used sliding barn door mechanisms to go between each pen as well as between each covered outdoor run.  

Each individual male pen is equipped with a dirt bath space, a built in roost bar to keep the shavings and the dirt bath space separate, and removable locking crock feed/water cups.  

The feed system works even better than expected. No opening and closing of doors to feed and water and when the boys drop food down, the girls scratch around and clean it up. Keeps the bedding turned regularly and waste to a minimum.

Cleaning the "rooster rows" is a breeze!!! A sled is my best friend. Simply scrape the floor of the male pen straight into the sled below and drag to the main door where the tractor bucket is waiting! I am all about ease and convenience. (Cleaning out their dirt bath area works the same way from the outside). 

The males get fresh air and their own individual covered run experience by dropping plywood doors off the back of their dirt bath areas. (Shown in photos below). These are secured at night to keep predators away and to keep them out of the elements. 

Food and water for the females are kept in the attached covered runs to deter predators from our coops and to keep moisture and humidity in the coops themselves to a minimum. Heated water bowls make winter chores hassle free! We use the same bowls year round, just plugged in for the cold winter months.

Industrial construction grade lights on a clicker (kept in the comfort of our home) make adding supplemental lighting in the winter months a breeze! 

Our coops are built on a foundation to avoid predators digging their way in. Additionally the coops AND the runs have an entire sheet of tin dug in all the way around the perimeter.