Elevating chickens is a pleasure. Hens lay colourful, scrumptious eggs, they’re pleasant to be round, they usually’re very photogenic. I typically have a number of hens surrounding me whereas I backyard, and my daughter’s favourite likes to be picked up for cuddles. However my husband is much less charmed. “I’ve spent among the most disgusting moments of my life in that rooster coop,” he as soon as instructed me. Behind each shiny picture of a fluffy hen in a spotless designer coop, there are gritty realities that often contain poop and loads of bills. Anybody contemplating a small yard flock wants to grasp the nice, the dangerous, and the smelly earlier than committing.
I spoke to eight consultants—together with farmers, veterinarians, and the co-owner of the oldest chick hatchery in the US—and compiled a listing of every little thing it’s essential get began, from a rooster coop to first assist to the chicks themselves. We now have info on the harder features of rooster conserving, too, together with illnesses, parasites, chick mortality, and rooster mating. There’s nobody proper method to increase chickens, however we’ve a considerable quantity of recommendation to get you began.
Our choose
No ready-made coop we’ve discovered is ideal, however if you happen to don’t need to construct your personal, this customizable mannequin gives a sturdy and well-designed dwelling to your chicks.
Should you’re contemplating a first-ever yard flock of chickens, we advocate the Petmate Superior Development Rooster Coop as a sturdy, easy-to-construct dwelling to your birds. (Should you’ve constructed IKEA furnishings, you possibly can construct this.) The Petmate coop comes unfinished, so you possibly can paint or stain it nonetheless you’d like—a enjoyable customization not out there on most prefab coops—and it’s filled with handy options corresponding to direct entry to the nesting packing containers for egg gathering, a slide-out panel to help with cleansing, and a full-size door to the rooster run.
The Petmate coop isn’t with out its faults, however after we first revealed this information in 2021 it was simply one of the best we discovered within the below $500 vary. The worth has since elevated to $600, and we’re at present testing a preferred inexpensive mannequin, the Producer’s Delight Sentinel Rooster Coop.
