All Cooped Up

It's true, the chickens are the stars of the blog this summer. They've gotten even more exposure than my garden, which usually steals the summer show. I have other things to tell you about, I promise. But I'm worried that you might be worried about my feathered friends, because I said they were outgrowing their box over a month ago and haven't given you any updates since then.

Well, worry no more. The chickens have been living it up in their new coop since late on July 17 (which happened to be the night before I left for the west coast for a week). It was a blisteringly hot day, although it had cooled off some by 11:00 that night when we finally finished the essentials. It still needs a few finishing touches, but the chickens seem to be perfectly happy with it.

Just wait until it has cedar shake siding, a nest box off the right side, and a run off the left in the lane between the side of the garage and the fence!

Thankfully, I had lots of help from Nick, who gets the credit for most of the design as well as the execution. Here he is working on the roof, which (like almost all of the materials for the coop) we salvaged from an about-to-be-demolished house. That's a longer story for another day. Meanwhile, here you can see that the front flips down for access and cleaning.

I also had help from my parents, who had come down that day to collect Maisie for the week. They stayed, and Dad set about building the ramp that goes from the upstairs to the downstairs. With a rope and a pulley, the ramp can be raised at night to close up the coop, preventing drafts and foiling predators.

Maisie helped me with excavations for the trench I dug around the perimeter, into which we extended the hardware cloth sides to prevent predators from burrowing in. She was really just trying to dig herself a cool nest in the shade somewhere close to the action. Did I mention it was nearly 100 degrees that day?

Trench: Complete. Kate and Nick: Filthy. (And hot and tired.) Parents took this photo before they departed, at which point we still had about four more hours to go.

But we made it! Into the coop we dumped the sleeping chickens, and then I went inside to pack. After I finally made it into bed, a huge thunderstorm rolled in, with wind and rain and flashing and crashing. Welcome home, chickens! At 6:00 the next morning, I checked on them as I headed for the airport, and all was well. The coop was dry, the chickens were curious, and with a little prodding they paraded down the ramp and set about inspecting their new yard.

These days, they have it all figured out. When I let down the ramp in the morning, they hurry down to their food and water. If I head for the garden, they get excited, squawking and running up and down the ramp and peering out the upstairs window for a better view of whatever green treat I might bring them. When the sun goes down, they head up to bed, huddling in a row on their roost.

If I open the door, out they come, because the grass really is greener on the other side of the fence. They quite like nibbling on the grass.

 

But they stick together, and they don't venture far from home. No need! Everything a chicken could want is right here.

From back to front: Penny, Polly, Pippi, Petunia