After having trialled hens on a balcony in Brooklyn, and chicken free ranging upstate New York, I finally came to the conclusion that they were happiest upstate, despite the many dangers. But how to keep them safe, while away? As a remote chicken coop owner, here is what I found.
Good to know
• The coop has to be rodent and predator proof.
• The coop has to be connected to a covered run, equally rodent and predator proof.
• The coop has to be connected to a covered run, equally rodent and predator proof.
Where to get the stuff
See my Pinterest board for all products and inspiration!
The coop
1. A metal roof over plywood + wire mesh stops predators.
2. Wood frame elevated on cinder blocks to prevent rotting.
3. Mesh extends down into the ground, then outwards underground.
Essentials
Rodent and predator proofing: Rodents (rats, squirrels, chipmunks, mice) will gnaw through wood until they get inside to eat the chicken food. Predators (foxes, raccoons, weasels) will dig and gnaw to try and get under and then inside the coop to eat the chicken. To prevent this, hardwire mesh is used. This method is a bit more arduous and expensive, but in my case I have found it to be 100% proof.
The inside walls and floor of a wooden coop has to be clad with 0.5 in hardwire mesh. The hardwire mesh must seamlessly fold under and out from below the coop. Go down half a foot into the ground and two feet out from the coop. For coops open to the ground, install mesh half a foot under the dirt floor, leaving no gaps for rodents and predators to get in.
Add wifi gates: Connect the coop and the run with an automated wifi controlled metal gate. Add a smart plug to this setup, as a backup, should interference cause the door to behave erratically. Program the plug to cut power as soon as the gate has closed for the night.
Pull power to the coop. You will need it for wifi controlled metal gates, lights, heaters, cameras, and water tanks.
Place the coop near water, as you have to refill tanks.
Place the coop in a shady area to keep it cooler in the summer months. If it is shaded by deciduous trees in the summer, it will be heated by the sun in the winter.
Add a human door for ease of maintenance. Make sure the human door opens outward.
Put roosting bars and nesting boxes high up. Chicken are originally woodland birds, and they love being off the ground.
Future upgrades
A separate smaller area within the coop that can be closed off; useful to isolate a new chicken, a wounded chicken, or a mother with hatchlings. I have a small box store coop within my larger coop.
Plexiglass to ‘board up’ the coop with in winter (if it has open hardware mesh walls or windows); this keeps winds out and heat in, yet provides air circulation and light.
The run
1 + 2. Placement of automatic chicken gates.
3. Mesh is dug down half a foot underground and folded outward from the coop, all around the run (and coop).
Essentials
Predator proofing: Use the same principle as for the coop to proof it.
Must be covered to prevent aerial attacks, and provide shelter from sun and rain and falling debris.
Watering: Install a 2 gallon water tank. It is heated, controlled by a thermostat, and can be outside in the winter. Make sure you have power to the run and the coop.
Human access: Install a human door for easy maintenance.
Cameras on automatic chicken gates: So you can check remotely that they indeed are closed for the night.
Future upgrades
Dust bath areas with sandy soil, diatomaceous earth and hay.
Roosting: Elevated rooster bars/swings.
Egg laying: Elevated nesting boxes for laying eggs.
Free ranging: If you want the flock to be able to free range for a few hours before closing time, add a second wifi controlled metal gate from the run to the outside.
Good to know
Baby chick proofing: If you plan to have baby chicks enjoying the run, 0.5 in wire cloth will prevent them from accidentally getting out.
Temporary netting: Soft plastic 0.5 in netting can be used in a pinch, however, rodents do gnaw holes in the netting, and falling debris mess it up. It is a short term solution.
Squirrels eat cables: Keep all cables away from hardwire mesh walls. They will (somehow) cut them from the outside. Any extension power cables are best dug down. If a part is above ground there is a metal mesh cover you can protect it with.
Water and food
Essentials
Watering: Use heated 2 gallon water tanks. They have a thermostat and turns on if temperatures drops below freezing. Put one in the run, and one in the coop. Hang them or prop them up on a cinder block to keep them 6 in off the ground, so they stay clean.
Feeders: Get a large food container made of metal. If rodents do get in to the coop, at least they will not gnaw the feeder to bits, as they do with plastic food bins.
Feed bins: Transfer feed from plastic bags to metal containers. I use vintage milk cans, similar to these.
Future upgrades
Baby waterer and feeder: For baby chicks, get a small non-heated waterer, as they usually hatch in warmer months. Also get a baby feeder. Keep them 1 – 2 in elevated to keep them free from dirt. Mommy hens are busy digging and scratching for food.
Good to know
Automatic feeders: Feeders do not have to be automated. I found that they often get clogged and stuck, and don’t work well with various types of chicken feed. If they get stuck, no food is dispensed, which is very bad in the remote chicken world.
Heating
To heat or not to heat the coop? I have found that chickens with larger combs and/or wattles (especially roosters) get frostbitten in winter in the Northern Catskills, NY.
Essentials
Reptile ceramic heaters: These heaters are radiant and not very likely to catch fire. Control them with a smart plug. I build my own using this ceramic heat emitter and this ceramic socket. I form a small hardware mesh cage around them so the birds don’t accidentally get burned. I turn them on when nights get below zero Celsius or 32 Fahrenheit. A frostbitten bird recovers better with heating.
Placement of ceramic heaters: They mount in the ceiling above their roosting bars. Before permanently attaching the ceramic heaters, observe where the birds settle in for the night, especially if you have birds with large wattles/combs (such as a rooster). Where they sit has to do with rank. When I initially put mine up, the rooster preferred to sit in a place that received less radiant heat from the emitters – so I had to move them as he had the biggest issue in my flock.
Good to know
Choose the right breed: This means small combs (if any) and wattles. Also check how the breed in question tolerates heat.
Avoid infrared light bulbs: These often contribute to chicken coop fires.
Feed
Winter
Scratch grains: To feed poultry effectively during winter, focus on providing a diet rich in protein, fats, and carbohydrates to help them stay warm and maintain their energy levels.
Summer
Layer feed: Limit high-heat-producing grains like corn in scratch grain. Instead, offer cooling options like leafy greens, vegetables, and fruits like watermelon, which also encourages hydration.
Free ranging: This is so beneficial for the chicken. And for you, as they eat ticks and other insects. They are regulated by daylight and will go back to their run/coop at the end of each day – like clock work. To limit their exposure to dangerous aerial predators, opt to limit their free ranging time. For example, if they go inside the coop to roost at 6.45 pm, let them out from the run at 4.45 pm for a 2 hour ramble.
All year bonus feed
Kitchen scraps like leafy greens and low-sugar fruits. To avoid attracting predators to the coop/run, give small amounts of scraps early in the day. That way the chicken have ample time to clean up absolutely everything. Scraps in the coop/run over night is a bad idea as many predators are nocturnal and will be attracted by the scents. If you have a compost nearby the coop/run, an alternative is to only put scraps there. When the chicken free range, they will find it and make a habit out of looting the compost.
Meds and supplements
Antibiotic powder: If a wattle or comb gets frostbitten, apply this powder to prevent it from becoming infected. The dry powder works well in freezing temperatures, as a spray (below) would cause more discomfort. The wattle/comb will shift from pale yellow moist texture, to a dry black texture. I find these black bits evetually fall off – and the wattle/comb regrow.
Wound care spray: Vetericyn works great all seasons except winter. Just spray onto wounds to promote healing.
VetRx supplement: provides effective relief and prevention of colds, roup, scaly legs and eye worm. Add to water or directly to bird.
Vitamins and electrolytes: Put this in the water when you refill the tanks.