Backyard Chickens?
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Rits
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It's about 100ft from the house but it's right behind the horse barn which has electricity and a freezeproof faucet hooked up to the well. Definitely all of that was a factor to make chores easier! Boy do they ever drink a lot, you're right. We are about to upgrade to a larger waterer now that they have more room.
We talk to them whenever we come up to the kennel and find that helps a lot, especially since they are eager for us to bring fresh food. Once they are older where I can introduce some treats I definitely plan to have some meal worms with a call when it's time to go in for the night. Looking forward to watching them come running.When you walk up I would add a word, 'here chicky', 'come', whatever you choose and of course have a treat.Teaching them to come can be a handy thing for them to know
The horses where we used to board Hunter had a call. To see 30+ horses running at a simple holler. It's an amazing thing to teach any animal...a solid recall ha!The yellow chicken I wouldn't say is top of the pecking order, I think one of the banded "roos" are as we see them corral other chickens around. He's just pretty brave and was always more likely to roost on top of the old box when we would open the top off to hang out with them. So he/she was first to check out the new digs.
The rest were too chicken until someone else tried.
Rits
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Wow, great job! @Rits They are so cute and really growing fast! You've done a wonderful job! Good work on getting them used to your hands and handling them. Everything looks clean and well put-together. I love the Jesus chick LOL and your Coup looks great so far. Can't wait to see it done.
Thank you! Glad someone else has my humor haha. Chickens can be pretty messy, absolutely no regards to when or where they poop or walk. So keeping things pretty clean to keep them happy and healthy is my priority. I hope we will be paid back in return with a bounty of eggs and happy clucks.
Just another example of my fingers working faster than my brain. 
Should say put lights on timers to keep them laying during the short days.
The yellow chicken I wouldn't say is top of the pecking order, I think one of the banded "roos" are as we see them corral other chickens around. He's just pretty brave and was always more likely to roost on top of the old box when we would open the top off to hang out with them. So he/she was first to check out the new digs.
I've never found it true, just curious about others experience.
So keeping things pretty clean to keep them happy and healthy is my priority. I hope we will be paid back in return with a bounty of eggs and happy clucks.
Sounds like you did your research and have things under control. I have no doubt you will have more eggs than you could ever eat. We do with just 6 hens. We now supply the neighborhood. Like I always say "Happy hens lay more eggs"
Very cool to watch that!! Now I have to post some photos! I was down at my friends house (three houses down) who is now raising chickens!!! I believe they are about 3 1/2 months old now and she has 11 with another 5 eggs ordered! 
I told her how @GennyB has 6 chickens and feeds the neighborhood! LOL I don't know WHAT she's gonna do with so many but I KNOW I am on the list! She says, Anyone who gives me an empty carton with their name on it will get eggs! Cool!!! She is new to this but I thought her 'setup' was pretty good. I got permission to post some pics and she is open to pros and cons to help her out. Let me get the pics off my phone!
I told her how @GennyB has 6 chickens and feeds the neighborhood! LOL I don't know WHAT she's gonna do with so many but I KNOW I am on the list! She says, Anyone who gives me an empty carton with their name on it will get eggs! Cool!!! She is new to this but I thought her 'setup' was pretty good. I got permission to post some pics and she is open to pros and cons to help her out. Let me get the pics off my phone!
That's how we do it. I have a table on the front porch for people to put their carton on when I'm not home.
Can't wait to see it!
Sit her down and let her read this thread.
My number 1 tip would be to find homesteader blogs. They have wonderful info. and take the best care of their girls. Hens are a very important part of their lively hood.
I'm standing with my back to her horse barn, looking across her driveway to the chicken coup area. Her house is to my right down the driveway.
And I realize perspective is so difficult in a photo. Everything looks flat and distance is hard to tell.
Here is the above photo zoomed in a bit. It's still hard to tell but the dog run (thats what she used) is large and larger (longer) than the shed. The picture makes it look flush with the front of the shed and its not, by a long shot. The chain link area is approx. 10x20 and the shed itself is appox 10x10.
You can sort of get an idea here. And you can see the tarp that is overhead. THAT needs to be more secure. And she knows it. I think she needs chicken wire or something instead of that. But every night the chickens all get locked up in the barn.
We went inside. This little red coup is at the back and next to the shed. You can see the ramp going into the shed.
The water is hanging on the wire and she used a baby's floor toy to hang the feed on.
The black tank holds sand for 'fluffing'.
Inside the shed....It's not finished but this is where she is making the nesting. The one big drawer on the bottom will have straw and the two top drawers with come out and she wants to secure them to the top of the dresser for nesting too. The dog gate is just the 'ladder' to go up to the dresser. On the sides she wants to secure baskets for putting some decorations or treats up high. Up high (not shown) where the roof meets the walls was an opening that she secured chicken wire to close up but still get air.
Now, she just told me that 3 of the chickens (2 hens and 1 rooster) went to another friend. She was just raising it for here. But she still has another 5 eggs coming. She still has one rooster in this batch and who knows what will be in the 5 eggs! I just told her that she's going to have to do something with the rooster or she is going to have more chickens! Right? I mean, they have to be separated, don't they? I know nothing! lol I know she is still learning but knows more than me!
She told me all the names of these chickens and of course it went in one ear and out the other! lol I know she said the black one was something like Black Sexy (something) I remembered that part because I thought it was so funny! And the white one was Longhorn or something? And that fluffy white one!!! OMG he looks like the Abominable Snowman. LOL I think he's the rooster too! I'm sure @GennyB can help with names!
I know the security of the setup is the biggest concern and I hope she gets on that ASAP. My other concern (and we hadn't touched on it yet) was winter. She has no electricity to the shed. I asked about the cold and she said with the closed up shed and lots of bedding and straw, they will be fine. I forgot about the water. I will asked her what she thinks about that freezing.
So let the thoughts, concerns, advice flow!
And I realize perspective is so difficult in a photo. Everything looks flat and distance is hard to tell.
Here is the above photo zoomed in a bit. It's still hard to tell but the dog run (thats what she used) is large and larger (longer) than the shed. The picture makes it look flush with the front of the shed and its not, by a long shot. The chain link area is approx. 10x20 and the shed itself is appox 10x10.
You can sort of get an idea here. And you can see the tarp that is overhead. THAT needs to be more secure.
And she knows it. I think she needs chicken wire or something instead of that. But every night the chickens all get locked up in the barn.We went inside. This little red coup is at the back and next to the shed. You can see the ramp going into the shed.
The water is hanging on the wire and she used a baby's floor toy to hang the feed on.
The black tank holds sand for 'fluffing'.
Inside the shed....It's not finished but this is where she is making the nesting. The one big drawer on the bottom will have straw and the two top drawers with come out and she wants to secure them to the top of the dresser for nesting too. The dog gate is just the 'ladder' to go up to the dresser. On the sides she wants to secure baskets for putting some decorations or treats up high. Up high (not shown) where the roof meets the walls was an opening that she secured chicken wire to close up but still get air.
Now, she just told me that 3 of the chickens (2 hens and 1 rooster) went to another friend. She was just raising it for here. But she still has another 5 eggs coming.
She still has one rooster in this batch and who knows what will be in the 5 eggs! I just told her that she's going to have to do something with the rooster or she is going to have more chickens! Right? I mean, they have to be separated, don't they? I know nothing! lol I know she is still learning but knows more than me! She told me all the names of these chickens and of course it went in one ear and out the other! lol I know she said the black one was something like Black Sexy (something) I remembered that part because I thought it was so funny! And the white one was Longhorn or something? And that fluffy white one!!! OMG he looks like the Abominable Snowman. LOL I think he's the rooster too! I'm sure @GennyB can help with names!
I know the security of the setup is the biggest concern and I hope she gets on that ASAP. My other concern (and we hadn't touched on it yet) was winter. She has no electricity to the shed. I asked about the cold and she said with the closed up shed and lots of bedding and straw, they will be fine. I forgot about the water. I will asked her what she thinks about that freezing.
So let the thoughts, concerns, advice flow!
The first thing I noticed was I would want the area around the chain link fence more secure. Just enough gap there for a predator to think it can get in. And they will! Easy enough to just start digging their way right in. The smell of chickens can bring hungry critters out of the woodwork for an easy meal.
The other big thing is the dust bath. Sand is great but I would add plain old dirt and food grade Diatomaceous Earth along with some wood ash. How to Make a Dust Bath For Chickens
and some more reading for her on the benefits of DE A Guide to Diatomaceous Earth Uses
I think sex link is what you are talking about Sex link - Wikipedia
Leghorn Leghorn chicken - Wikipedia
The other big thing is the dust bath. Sand is great but I would add plain old dirt and food grade Diatomaceous Earth along with some wood ash. How to Make a Dust Bath For Chickens
and some more reading for her on the benefits of DE A Guide to Diatomaceous Earth Uses
I think sex link is what you are talking about Sex link - Wikipedia
Longhorn or something? LOL I'm sure @GennyB knows!
Leghorn Leghorn chicken - Wikipedia
Rits
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@MyBuddy No, you don't have to separate the rooster from the hens unless you have too many roosters where they are beating up the hens too much. Yes, we can still eat the eggs so long as you go out there daily to collect! Its not until momma hen sits on them and turns them for a few days do they start "cooking" Putting them in the fridge stops the process.
Another thought I had when I saw the coop was is she scooping the poop daily? If not she'll want to do the 8" deep litter method. You have ~8" of bedding and turn it daily. Put fresh down on top weekly (or more depending) and deep clean it all out yearly. Micro organisms do the rest and the poo turns into compost and eventually settles to the bottom.
The other benefit of the deep litter is the heat it will create for the winter! From what I've read, it depends on the breed if they can tolerate the cold up to a certain point. The biggest thing is you want ventilation to keep the moisture in the coop out or else you risk frostbite on combs.
Ditto on the chain link at the bottom as Genny said! She'll want to attach and bury hardware cloth and curve it away from the kennel. That way if they dig further back to try and dig under, they'll hit the curve of the cloth and give up.
Another thought I had when I saw the coop was is she scooping the poop daily? If not she'll want to do the 8" deep litter method. You have ~8" of bedding and turn it daily. Put fresh down on top weekly (or more depending) and deep clean it all out yearly. Micro organisms do the rest and the poo turns into compost and eventually settles to the bottom.
The other benefit of the deep litter is the heat it will create for the winter! From what I've read, it depends on the breed if they can tolerate the cold up to a certain point. The biggest thing is you want ventilation to keep the moisture in the coop out or else you risk frostbite on combs.
Ditto on the chain link at the bottom as Genny said! She'll want to attach and bury hardware cloth and curve it away from the kennel. That way if they dig further back to try and dig under, they'll hit the curve of the cloth and give up.
Rits
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One other thing is she might want some kind of " dry bedding" for the kennel run. Unless it drains really well then ignore me! If that gets wet during the rainy season or when the snow is melting, that is going to be a feeding ground for nasty stuff and muck. I would want to keep it dry personally. Some use wood chips, straw, hay, shavings, grass clippings, leaves, etc. Obviously it'd be better to figure out how to keep it dry but those are some temporary fixes to absorb any moisture to keep the chickens off the wet stuff.
Here's more info. on that process http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/the-deep-litter-method-of-waste/
We tried it for a bit but personally I prefer just raking out the coop and putting down new bedding. It would probably work better on more land. Here the coop is just too close to the house for access to power and water and it STINKS! I take the compost to the farm and add to the huge compost pile we have for the garden. If she goes with this method no DE! it will disrupt the process.
BTW, there is an awful lot of feathers in that coop. Looks like the beginning of molt season.
Hardware cloth is also important to keep snakes and small rodents out that enjoy an egg feast.
I send it her way each and every time.
Rits
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Hmm yeah, I could see that for chickens that are in their coop more often with less land to roam. Our neighbors do the deep litter and my husband was surprised by the lack of smell! Their chickens used to be free range but a few kept wandering into neighbors yards 2-3 houses down (which out here is a good distance away from the coop!) Now they have a big fenced in area with electric chicken netting. His comment about the lack of smell was recent with the fenced in area. They have access to it from dawn til dusk so maybe it helps that they can do their business outside? Although, I know they poop the most when roosting
but that can be solved with a droppings tray.I'm torn on what to use personally... I started with sand but their poops were so small I couldn't even scoop it, lol. I still tried my best to scoop every day, and boy was it frustrating. Switched to pine shavings and its so much easier to just turn everything and add fresh on top. Very little smell, even being contained in the garage. Probably when they are pooping bigger having sand wouldn't be so bad? Though I'm not swayed too much since I already scoop 2 litter boxes for my cats, now I have to scoop for 13 feathered beaked cats?
The way it was explained to me is the smell will sort of resolve itself as it gets seasoned. I couldn't wait. The humidity just seems to hold odors and it was something I couldn't stand. Probably isn't so bad for people with horses or lots of animals. Odors are something that bother me, just can't deal with smelly anything. When I was a kid I was the brat that said something when we were in line behind the old lady at the grocery store that took a bath in perfume.
I know lots of chicken people around here that do use the deep litter and it works just fine for them. I use mostly pine straw and shavings in the coop and it's pretty easy to just rake it right in a bucket. I have a small compost bin that gets hauled to the farm and eventually used as compost. I also use a tray where they roost and just hose it off. The whole process doesn't even take 10 minutes.
It's a bit early for molting. That starts as the days get shorter. Probably stress from moving to a new home. They'll settle in. Could be a rooster, they are relentless! If they were human they would be sent to rehab for sex addiction.
Honestly the one thing I said to her was I was surprised that there was no smell. Maybe because it's so open? Maybe when they are all in that shed in the winter it could start to smell but I really didn't notice anything.
There are only three and a half months old. Aren't they a little young?
You mean from 'jumping' the chickens?
There are only three and a half months old. Aren't they a little young?
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