The perfect chicken run

[Paul Wagland]

I recently built a good static run for our chooks, but we have since been thinking about buying some of our neighbour's garden and if we did we would move the girls there, where they are more sheltered and out of public view.

On the practical side, what do you think makes up the ideal chicken house and run? How many nest boxes, what size perches, how big, what should the floor be made of, enclosed or open, etc etc.

Also... what do you think about letting the hens free-range in a fenced-in part of the garden? Would they be safe during the day, when we are at work? Would grass and plants survive their attentions?! I have thought about planting fruit trees with bark chippings underneath, but would such a surface cope with the poo?!

We're talking three to six hens in an area about 3m by 4m...

All thoughts much appreciated!

[kirsty b]

A shed in the middle with a run on either side and a pop hole in each side wall. So that one run can be rested while the other is used.
The shed partitioned so that nest boxes and perches are in one half and food bins can be kept in the other half.
For 6 hens you'll probably need only 2 nest boxes as they tend to all use one (mine do anyway)

[Paul Wagland]

Two parts to the run is a good idea - also means I could work on the fruit trees without the girls 'helping out'.

[kirsty b]

I only have the one run and the girls have fouled it and its horrible for them despite my efforts to keep mud at bay in the wet weather. A second run would give them more room without exposing them to the risks of unsupervised free ranging, my plot is on a busy road too as well has having furry visitors.

[Paulottie]

6 hens will completely strip that land and will not let it recover.
3 well fed hens in a moveable run maybe a metre by three. just let out for a few hours a day and it is more manageable. Look for a smallish ark maybe?
You need to be aware that mites and other pest do build up in the soil.
I some times put straw in the run-easy to collect up weekly and put in the compost.
Chickens like to scatch around and make their dust baths etc.
A wired floor is safest but I don't like it . I move the pen around the veg beds and then a few spots in the garden during summer.
No they will not be safe left out alone during the day (in towns foxes around during the day) in the country foxes tend to come at/after dusk or dawn. You need fox proof/electric fencing to leave them

[Paul Wagland]

No they will not be safe left out alone during the day (in towns foxes around during the day) in the country foxes tend to come at/after dusk or dawn. You need fox proof/electric fencing to leave them

I though as much to be honest... how high does a fence need to be to keep a fox out, assuming I build one so they can't get through or under it?

[Eyren]

Wouldn't like to say - they can certainly jump to the top of a 6' wall or solid fence

6-8 ft of chainlink, plus sunk into the soil for at least a foot might do it, especially if you electrified it. But I'm no expert - I keep my hens in the run when I'm out, even though I have yet to see a fox near our house...

The safest thing would be a good-sized covered walk-in run (at least 1sqm per hen), with absorbent bedding such as Hemcore that can be raked up regularly and composted for use on your lottie, and let them free-range on grass when you are there to supervise.

[Sue]

Hi Paul
I do what Eyren suggests, a covered run has kept the rain off so the ground underneath is soft but not a muddy mess. I put down wood shavings, straw and dried leaves for them and clear this out once a week to put down fresh.
You do get a lovely big pooh mountain for the garden too.
The run is made of weldmesh and has a wire netting skirt pegged down all round the outside to stop anything (rats etc) digging in and that seems to have worked, although the hens don't help by digging holes on the inside next to the wire to make dustbaths.
And if you've got bark chippings on your paths I can imagine what a mess they'll make of that.
I let mine out to roam around a bit when I'm cleaning out, doing their water etc and they trash the surrounding area in a very short space of time. I'm thinking of putting my v limited DIY skills to the test to make an ark so that they can go out in this and be moved on to fresh areas during the day and go back to their home at night. That way they can get some fresh ground and I can get on with the allotment without having to watch over them all the time.
Sue

[Paul Wagland]

Thanks grapes! Will let you know how I get on.

[Eyren]

...the hens don't help by digging holes on the inside next to the wire to make dustbaths.

Very true - ours sometimes undermine the eglu skirt in their enthusiasm. I'm just thankful we don't have a fox problem here.

And if you've got bark chippings on your paths I can imagine what a mess they'll make of that.

Tell me about it! Our house's previous owners went for a "low maintenance" look, with gravel in the gaps either side of the path to keep weeds down, and I'm forever sweeping it back into place

[Paulottie]

Think prison Paul!!!

2m with a back hang might do it ..they usually go for the corners when climbing.

Re digging in: It is again good to have L shaped wiring. They can dig deep but will do so close to the fence and if they hit horizontal wire it tends to flummox them. Always concrete/pave by gate. so they cant dig under that.

Mine are moved around the veg beds and corners of the garden in a pen. I try and put slabs and rocks it to stop digging (a bit) but as I say In the country you MUST be home at dusk to shut the house up..The night you forget Basil will get in. The pop hole is small and has L shaped tunnel really that a fox would find difficult to get round...I converted an old rabbit hutch and pen we made for a friend. When they emigrated they gave us the rabbit and Guinea pig...couldn't get the rabbit in one night and fox came round...my son found the head in his sand pit It came back for the pig in the morning...never seen one on the property before or since..our old guinea pig too canny to be caught out his hutch. Foxes can just smell chickens and will check on you and it is a sad day...don't want to be pessimistic but they have a deserved reputation.

[blackguard]

Charlie's chest span is 14 inches, so keep pop holes as small as possible. Foxes tend to do damage over a period so keep an eye out and reduce the risk.

[Eyren]

Charlie's chest span is 14 inches

That's exactly the same size as the bigger of my Burmese cats - so not very big!

[Morff]

Hi,
Have you guys heard of Hemcore? We use this in our run because it absorbs smells and liquid, the girls can dig about in it and we change it every month or so. We've not looked back since swapping over to it.

Our girls stay in the run when we are out (eglu, run and extension). They never ever free range unsupervised because even though we don't have a fox issue (that we are aware of) you can never become complacent: they are dependent on you for security. One thing we haven't managed to protect ours from, it would seem, are hot air balloons- two go over quite regularly and send the girls scurrying for the undergrowth!

[kirsty b]

Use Hemcore in the shed on the floor and in the nest boxes now. Love the stuff.
Have just put a massive tarp over the top of my run this morning in the hope that it will help stop the floor of the run getting too wet with the weather that has been predicted. Its only just dried out after the last lot we had!

Is Hemcore ok outside then? Considered trying it but was afraid of making the run even messier or do I just need to put down a nice thick layer? Say 4-5 inches? Well worth a try if it works and can help keep my run clean and smelling nicer.