Here are five vital things you must consider when coming up with or building a chicken house. Missing any one of these points is highly likely to finish in disaster for you, your coop or your chickens.

1. Bye Laws

Before you even start considering coming up with or building a chicken house you should check the local bye laws for any restrictions or licence that may be required. This will change from country to country and even between states, cities and towns.

2. Size

Many people may tell you that size isn’t important but in the case of a chicken coop is surely is. You will need to consider how many chickens you plan to keep and most likely allow for some expansion of your flock.This might need to be moderated by your available space, if you’ve got a tiny yard for instance, but you should never compromise your chickens wants. If you have a small yard you may need to keep less chickens!

3. Location

The location of your chicken house is very important. Consider your local weather conditions I.e. Prevailing winds. Make sure that any run off water from sheds or houses will not hit your coop. Your Chickens will also desire plenty of ventilation and light so guarantee this is amalgamated into the design and not proscribed by the location.

4. Protection

A chicken coop has one main function and that’s to keep your chickens safe and healthy. You need to think about any threats to your chickens and ensure that protection is built into the chicken house designs. For instance, raising your coop off the ground can help defend against some predators and ensuring chicken wire is soundly fixed and covers all suitable openings. Rain and winds can threaten your flock so make sure that roof overhangs are sufficient to stop water dripping into doors or windows.

5. Feed and Water

Chickens need a daily feed and water. They don’t seem to be like budgies who can be given a giant feeder of food and water and be left for some days or even a week. Careful consideration of the food and water vessels and placement is essential. If you simply put food and water in bowls on the ground they may swiftly become fouled with droppings and that could be a sure recipe for sick chickens. Also ensure that you have simple access for feed and water as you’ll need to get to them every day.

If you want to know about how to build chicken house and you fancy the easy option, you’ll find all the plans you need to get started right away at: how to build chicken coops.