Chicken Coops

My chickens free range so they are in their coop at night. Funny things is the first time I let them free range when the sun went down they just jumped back in the coop. When I made the second coop I divided three in each coop and the next day they went back in the coop in the same order. They get really protective of their coops. If you get new chickens that have an age difference I recommend getting another coop. The first coop I bought is really for rabbits but I modified it for chickens. The second one I made and it was a pain in my ass. You can even look on craigslist and find them.

I was told that two elements for chickens is fine but three is severe. Example, they are fine if it rains just make sure the coop is covered ( mine free range in the rain), if it gets windy they will be fine, but if you get let's say hail they need to be in their coop. Chickens are fine in the cold. It is when it's below mid 20's that you might worry. I add hay to coop so I don't use a heating element because that can start a fire. I am lucky because in my area we get little cold weather. Summers are harsh on chickens. Take good care during summers.

Last is about nesting boxes. During winter when I have hay in the coop the hens lay anywhere. Now that we are heading into summer I only put hay in the nesting boxes and they only lay in the nesting boxes. We have a nesting box in each coop but my hens use the same nesting box and will even push each other out of it. Sometimes I find eggs in the yard.