Chickens survive in the wild even without human intervention.
Free ranging chickens look for their own food and shelter.
But if you want to raise chickens for purposes like having eggs and meat for business or for your own household consumption, you will need to build a chicken coop.
A chicken coop is a shelter you build for your chickens.
It can be very big if you have many chickens to raise or it can be small if you have only a few to take care of.
If you want to build a chicken coop, here is your ultimate guide.
1.
Project the number of chickens you will have.
As mentioned earlier, big coops are needed if you have many to raise.
The size of the coop should be big enough to give the chickens room to run around.
2.
Study your reasons for raising chickens.
If you raise chickens for their eggs, you will need to design your coop with enough nests.
Nest location should be carefully planned out because eggs easily break.
Chickens are not conscious of where they step on so make sure that the nests are placed such that they will be protected from the hens when they move around.
3.
You also need to have enough feeding and watering materials.
They must be spread throughout the coop so that the chickens will not fight over food and water.
They are better hung because again, chickens are not conscious of where they step on and also where they poop.
You wouldn't want their droppings to mix with their food.
4.
You also have to consider methods of cleaning the coop.
You have to plan your coop to be built in a way that is easy to clean.
You wouldn't want your neighbors complaining about bad smell.
You must also have enough water to clean the area and there should also be proper drainage to avoid this.
Let these tips guide you as you build a chicken coop.