The best chicken coop designs are those that are simple yet functional. Chicken coops should be able to provide comfortable housing for your chickens to ensure their health and wellness. The best chicken coop designs are not that complicated and would often be deemed too simple when observed by others. Chicken pens that put external appearance first on their priority tend to mistreat their chickens simply because they care more about their convenience.
When it comes to choosing your chicken coop, you need to consider the well-being and comfort of the birds that will occupy it. Of course, you want them to give them as much comfort as possible to ensure great health.
The hen house must be built with quality materials. Remember that your chicken pen would house many generations of chickens. As such, it should be able to take years of abuse without showing signs of damage. Just like your own house, you need to build it keeping in mind its usability many years down the line.
The comfort of your chicken is important. I’ve been saying that since the beginning of this article and I will say it again. Do not make the mistake of cramping your chickens into a small space. That would only lead to disaster. The rule of thumb is to allocate around 4 square feet per average sized hens. For bantam chickens, you can provide less space as needed. For larger breeds, perhaps 5 to 6 square feet per bird would be sufficient.
Your coop must be able to withstand different weather patterns. If you live in an area which is prone to rain and dry heat, you are better off with a metal chicken pen. You can always go for wood chicken pens but they have a tendency to rot especially if exposed to rain and heat. If you want to, you can use treated wood to reduce rotting but the material sprayed on wood is poisonous to animals. In any case, unless you’re certain that your place will be sunny 90% of the time, you should do away with wooden chicken pens.
Metal chicken pens are becoming quite popular today because of their sturdiness and seemingly longer life span. They are weather proofed and can withstand changing of the season without any problem. Metal chicken pens are made mostly of aluminum which is rust resistant, in case you’re wondering.
The access to your chicken coop should only be large enough for them but no more than that. Your chicken coop should be predator proof. Considering that chickens are the popular target of predators, you should keep their welfare in mind when choosing coops. Make sure that the access hatch can easily be opened and closed by you. Keep in mind that some predators can open hatch, even ones with locks.
There are chicken coop designs that have two access, one for you and one for the birds. The bigger access is to allow you to clean the coop easily.
Good ventilation is important for chickens. You need not worry about your chickens getting cold because they have feathers for that. Their house should have good ventilation to give them access to fresh air all the time. Some chicken coops have mesh bottoms which is better for cleanup and ventilation. Always choose a design with good mesh integration. Just make sure it is made with quality to avoid predators destroying it easily.
The best chicken coop design should have all of these features plus more. Your goal is to keep your hens healthy and comfortable. You can ensure that with the use of a quality chicken coop design.