There are as many different reasons that people raise chickens as there are styles and designs of backyard poultry coops. Some of these reasons might not be as common as you might think. Sure there are those who want to eat healthy.
They raise chickens so that they can have healthy chicken meat and eggs on demand. There is nothing like waking up to fresh eggs in the morning.
Then, there are those who build backyard poultry coops for the purpose of selling their eggs and chickens for profit.
In addition, you will find people who raise rare chickens so that they can sell exotic baby chicks. There are even folks who raise chickens so that they can harvest and only sell their feathers.
There are also plenty of reasons for why people build backyard chicken coops. However, despite all of these reasons, it really does not matter unless they take special precautions and ensure that every need of their flock is properly met.
The bottom line is that unless you get the cooperation of your chickens, none of these goals will be met. It is all about keeping the chickens safe, warm, fed and dry. Basically, it is all about the chickens when it comes to building coops for backyard chicken.
Table of Contents
Backyard Poultry Coops
Pick the wrong design or fail to properly satisfy your flock’s needs, then you are destined to fail. This article is going to talk about a few of the things that you can do to make sure that your flock is thoroughly comfortable and happy in the style and design of coops for chickens in backyard that you choose to build.
BYC Need Insulation
Surprisingly, a lot of builders will build garden chicken coops and account for everything except insulation for the coop. They will build the perches, the nesting boxes, put in the right ventilation, but they will fail to properly insulate the walls of their yard chicken coops. The proper insulation helps to keep the chickens warm in the wintertime and cool during the summer.
In addition, the right insulation in backyard poultry coops will go a long way in controlling the humidity levels of the hen house, which will help to keep the chickens nice and dry. When chickens are at a comfortable body temperature and also dry, they tend to produce more eggs. Get any of these conditions out of whack, they will not be very cooperative at all. There goes your dream of selling eggs, baby chicks and exotic feathers quickly turning in to a nightmare.
BYC Need Protection
Chickens must be protected from both predators as well as the basic elements. When you are raising chickens, chicken wire will become one of your favorite tools. It can be used to keep predators away from your chickens while they sleep, eat and lay eggs. This is especially useful during the night time when most predators like to prowl.
Remember, in order to perform well, chickens have to be in a safe environment that does not cause them a lot of stress. If you want to raise chickens successfully, then one of the main things that you need to focus on is safety. Backyard poultry coops should always account for this.
Also, make sure that they are properly protected from the everyday elements. For example, ensure that all doors and windows are sealed in the right manner. You do not want to have drafts coming in under the doors that will give your chickens a chill during the night.
BYC Need Ventilation
Chickens might seem like strange birds to some people, but they are very much like humans in the sense that they want their environment to be satisfying and comfortable. Chickens need fresh air in order to survive.
During the planning stages, make it a point to look for backyard poultry coops that have windows. In addition, there are plans that provide for vents. Make use of these and ensure that your hen house also has good cross ventilation.
You do not want hot and smelly backyard poultry coops that do not have good air circulation. Would you want to stay in such a place?
Well, neither will the chickens. This is why they will usually leave the chicken coops in yard to find fresh sources of air, which means that there is less time spent on laying eggs.
Backyard bird coops should be properly ventilated in order to guarantee that you will get the best performance from your chickens.
It is commendable that you have wonderful plans to raise chickens in your backyard. People wish to do this for various reasons such as to save a little money, to eat healthier or to possibly sell chicken products and earn a living.
However, unless you know how to create backyard chicken coops that account for every need of the chickens that will be living there, you might not successfully reach your goal.
Make sure that your hen house has the right ventilation, protection and insulation for your chickens. When it comes to raising chickens, it is all about the comfort level and happiness of the chickens in every way.