• Home
  • Chickens
    • Chicken Breeds
    • Hatching
    • Poultry Shows & Homesteading Faires
  • Nigerian Dwarf Goats
    • Our Goat Herd
      • Does
      • Bucks
      • Reference Goats
    • Goat Blog
    • 2021 Nigerian Dwarf Goats for Sale
      • Nigerian Dwarf Goat Sales Policy
  • Modern Homesteading
    • Aquaponics
    • Farm Animals
      • Ducks
      • Pigs
      • Quail
      • Turkeys
    • Flower Gardens
      • Our Gardens
      • Not Our Gardens
      • Bloom Day
      • Pacific NW Plants
    • Home Grown Food
      • How Our Garden Grows
    • Homestead Updates
      • 2014 Monthly Updates
      • 2016 Weekly Updates
  • This Life
    • Home Education
      • Field Trips
      • Geography
      • Literature & Books
      • Science
      • US History
      • World Studies
    • hobbies
      • Geocaching & Letterboxing
      • Handmade
        • Canvas
        • Cement
        • Kid Crafts
        • Paper
        • Sewing
        • Wood
      • Home Decor
      • Photo Fun
        • Ridgetop Digital Shop on Etsy
        • Photos
        • Weather & Sky Shots
      • Running
    • Wildlife
      • Birds
You are here: Home / Farm Animals / Chickens / Our Main Coop & Run

January 20, 2013 by: RidgetopFarm&Garden

Our Main Coop & Run

Main Coop title

Before the Chicken Huts & before the Chicken Tractors was our main coop. Farmer John built it in the spring of 2009. The coop hasn’t had many changes, but the run has. We still consider this our main coop since it is where most of our egg layers call home.

INSIDE THE COOP

The coop has the necessary roosts and nest boxes. The ceiling is insulated. We have a light on a timer during the winter months.

Main Coop inside

Left: Golden Polish peeking out of a nest box. Top Right: Occasionally we’ve used the coop as a brooder, in this case for turkey poults.

 

NEST BOXES

Farmer John built the nest boxes so they are accessible without going in the coop. Genius!

Main Coop nest boxes

 

2009 & 2010

Left: 2009
Right: 2010. Notice the added chicken wire on top of the run compared to 2009. It didn’t take us long to figure out that it was necessary to protect our flock from predators. We’ve never had a problem with raccoons, opossums or skunks digging under the fence. Our fiercest predator seems to be bobcats climbing in, grabbing dinner, then climbing out. The smaller addition to the run was built for our ducks. We continue to call it the duck pen even though ducks have not lived in there for quite some time. That area seems to have a rotating variety of critters living there, including chickens, turkeys, goats and pigs.

Main Coop 2009 2010

 

2012

Main Coop 2012

 

THE TROUBLE WITH SNOW

We had to lay chicken wire across the top of our run to keep the bobcats out. However, it was not built to hold the weight of snow. Two winters in a row the run collapsed multiple times.

Main Coop snow

 

REBUILDING THE RUN

A couple winters with the run caving in meant it was time to fix the problem before another winter came. So, in the fall of 2012, Farmer John redid the entire run. Unfortunately, that meant making the run about half its original size. But, in return, the chickens got a well covered area year round.

Main Coop 2013

This time the roof was made from not only chicken wire, but also 2x4s and tin roofing.

Main Coop snow2

The reconstruction has worked perfectly.

 

Who knew when Farmer John built this coop over 4 years ago that it would lead to our own little farm with a variety of animals and a small business? Maybe Farmer John envisioned that, but I certainly did not see that was our path.

 

Related Posts

  • Our Chicken HutsOur Chicken Huts
  • Our Chicken TractorsOur Chicken Tractors
  • 2017 Hatch #12017 Hatch #1
  • MaransMarans

Let’s Connect

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • YouTube

Search Ridgetop Farm & Garden

LATEST INSTAGRAM PHOTOS

ridgetop_farm_and_garden

Jennifer
Spring has sprung. 🌸 🌼🌷 . #ridgetopfarman Spring has sprung. 🌸 🌼🌷
.
#ridgetopfarmandgarden #springflowers #pacificnorthwest #beautifulafternoon
This red is amazing. ❤ . #ridgetopfarmandgarden This red is amazing. ❤
.
#ridgetopfarmandgarden #nofilter
The deer are enjoying crab apples today. ❤ . #ri The deer are enjoying crab apples today. ❤
.
#ridgetopfarmandgarden #ridgetopwild #blacktaildeer #fallinoregon #pnw #nature
Things are just ducky. 🦆 . #ridgetopfarmandgard Things are just ducky. 🦆
.
#ridgetopfarmandgarden
4 goat girl friends just chillin'. Clifford, Georg 4 goat girl friends just chillin'. Clifford, Georgia, Bunny, and the queen Willow.
.
#ridgetopfarmandgarden #ridgetopgoats #nigeriandwarfgoats #farmlife #goatsofinstagram #summer
This handsome fella is one of our spring kids that This handsome fella is one of our spring kids that we are planning to keep. Earlier this week I enjoyed a visit with 3 of our kids that moved to a new home. They looked great and seem to be settling in perfectly.
.
#ridgetopfarmandgarden #ridgetopgoats #nigeriandwarfgoats #farmlife
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Archives

Tags

31 Days 2016 update animal science Aquaponics Back Yard birds of 2013 Bird Village Black Copper Marans Bloom Day Blue Copper Marans Chickens Chicks Crafts DIY Ducks Easter Egger Eggs Europe Farm Flowers Food Garden Front Pond Front Yard genetically speaking Goats Greenhouse Handmade Hatch herbs Holidays Home School Incubator Kids Marans Nigerian Dwarf Goat Oregon Paint Race Recap Run Shade Garden Tilapia Travel Vegetables Wild Birds Wildlife

Ridgetop Digital Shop

Check out Ridgetop Digital Shop for party decor & photo booth props ⬇️

http://www.ridgetopfarmandgarden.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Ridgetop-Digital-Shop-Nacho-Graduation-Party-Decor.mp4

Candling Eggs

Candling Eggs

Disclaimer

The data given at Ridgetop Farm and Garden is for general information and entertainment purposes only. Although it is based on our own knowledge and experiences, this information is our opinion only and should not be used as legal or medical advice.

Printable Goat Records

Printable Goat Records

Copyright

Unless otherwise noted, Ridgetop Farm and Garden is the legal copyright holder of all materials on this website. It may not be used, reprinted, modified or published without our written consent. However, if you enjoy something we post and would like to share it on your own social media site, please do so, but you must link to our original post.

Herb Barrels

Herb Barrels

Disclosure

Ridgetop Farm & Garden is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Many of our blog posts contain advertisements or affiliate links, which means we will make a small commission if you buy any products that have been linked to on this blog.
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact

© 2023 · Fun Genesis WordPress Theme by, Pretty Darn Cute Design