Being a chicken farmer can be a rewarding but exhausting experience. Many of the problems for chicken farmers start with the coop, so in our guide, we’ll show you ways to improve your chicken coop and make your life easier!
Set Up an Automatic Waterer
Giving water to the chickens isn’t a difficult chore for most farms, but it can be time-consuming and a hassle. Consider setting up an automatic waterer to do the job for you!
Automatic waterers are easy to find at many big-box and hardware stores or online marketplaces—you can even build one yourself if you’re handy enough. Many chicken keepers will also attach a rain barrel and spigot to the coop and waterer to collect fresh rainwater and make the coop even more sustainable. It’s a little thing, but an automatic waterer takes one more chore off your list!
Use Plastic Materials for the Enclosure
If you’re renovating or building an enclosure for the chicken, consider using plastic instead of traditional wooden boards. Chickens are perfect for plastic livestock enclosures because plastic is much more durable than wood, and it can even be a more sanitary option.
While cleaning a chicken coop can be annoying, cleaning a plastic coop is much easier since plastic is naturally water-proof—with a quick hose down and brush, the coop will look good as new! A plastic chicken coop is a simple improvement that gives your chickens a cleaner place to roost, making your life much easier!
Add a Green Roof
Green rooftops and gardens are all the rage for sustainable houses, but there’s no reason you can’t put one on your chicken’s roof too! A green roof offers many advantages—it provides sustainable insulation for a warmer coop (especially valuable for farmers in colder regions) and provides a space to grow veggies and herbs for the chickens to eat. Instead of having a separate garden and chicken coop, why not combine the two into one easy solution?
Add an Electrified Fence
Predation is always a concern for chicken farmers, and it can cause a lot of restless nights. Fencing around the perimeter and coop is important, and an electrified fence can offer added protection.
Pro Tip
Train your chickens to enter their coop in the evening by feeding them inside the coop at dusk every day—it’ll save you the trouble of having to herd them!
You’ll also want to bury the fence or install added mesh below the fence and coop to keep predators from digging into the run. For birds of prey, there’s not much you can do besides build a wood overhang for protection. Additionally, you can keep the chickens cooped up at dusk and dawn, the most common hunting time for aerial predators.