coop query

[di]

wondering if anyone can advise us re renovating old rabbit hutch for chooks?we recently got 10 POL brown hens & are due to get 2 7week old suffolk pieds next w/e,;we have 3 options & hoping someone may have the wisdom to suggest which would work the best!option 1;attempt to put them in with each other,but concerned due to size&age difference bullying could lead 2 fatality?!option 2;convert my sis's old rabbit hutch for coop & make a seperate enclosure in existing run,to let them get used to each other without danger of death!only prob is my sis's rabbits had mixy!they died over a year ago & hutch has been disinfected,can mixy be passed on to chooks?would the disease still be present in hutch? option 3.andis got some handiwork ahead of him over the next week making a fresh coop!

[roitelet]

I would think tht the option 2 would be OK. Chooks are not subject to Mixy. so you need not worry on that score. An adjacent run to the other chooks is a good idea and allows the old chooks to get used to the new ones.

When you are ready to put them all in together do it at night and you shouldn't have a problem, just a little mild arguement to start with but nothing serious.

[daisybeegood]

Hi
I am new to this & would be interested to find out how your chickens fared & if you re-used your hutch. We have 2 rabbit hutches, 1 small one & a 2 storey 'Thistle Hall' from Pets at Home, I am considering converting them to house chickens in the future. Any advice or useful comments would be appreciated, my husband thinks I am barking mad!
Many thanks!

[di]

hi daisy,we've now had the chicks for about 3weeks(aroundabout 11weeks old so not so tiny!).we opted for the rabbit hutch & their own pen inside the big run.so far so good,still dont feel quite ready to put them together yet \still small compared to the others.as far as the hutch is concerned i think they've found it quite adequate as a temporary,but i think i'd be inclined to have done more converting if it were to be a permanent home.ie.theres not enough height to be able to put perches in for them,but that said the others have more than enough perches but opt for sleeping in the nesting boxes!?I know theres been several threads on making coops,maybe these may have more useful tips on using exrabbit hutch??sorry i cant be more help but we're fairly new to the game also & dont want to be giving out wrong advice!!Good luck!~both with hutch conversions AND more importantly persuading OH on how much chooks will enrich your lives!!:

[Hilary B]

Are the perches higher than the nest boxes? Did you go out and lift the hens to the perches for the first few evenings (best done after dark, by torchlight)?
It really is best to discourage sleeping in nest boxes, because they tend to get VERY dirty, and dirty eggs don't keep as well (nor do washed ones).
Perches in rabbit-hutch can be 2 inches off the floor, The idea is to teach them to use a perch......