Coopers Flock

So you walked through the farm store and saw those adorable little chicks chirping there cute little butts off and NEED some! What now? 

If you’re anything like me, I feel your pain. I researched for so long, but when it came down to it, I had no idea what to get to be prepared. 

Luckily, there was a wonderful young woman at our local Farm and Fleet that walked me around to get everything I needed. Her name is Lindsay, and we even named a chick after her!

The brooder*

A brooder is a place for your chicks to grow while they stay safe and warm.

This can be just about anything. You can build it out of wood, use large plastic containers, a kiddie pool or anything that you want or have available. We have used so many different things. I have a post on brooders with more detail, click HERE to read it! Anything can really work though and everything has its pros and cons. 

Your brooder will need a heat source. We have always used a heat lamp with bulb, but if you aren’t comfortable with this there are other options. I have heard a lot about heat plates and it’s definitely something to consider.

The coop *

Chickens need a home!

We had the hardest time finding a coop. In fact, we ended up finding DIY plans online and building one. You can read about that and find the link to the plans here. The problem we had came down to size and cost. We knew we were going to want a large coop so we weren’t restricted on the size of a future flock. Most of the coops say they can house many chickens, but they are too small for the number they claim (in my option). We did end up buying a small coop (pictured above) because we were not finished with the build in time. This turned out great! I have used the smaller coop if a chicken needed to be quarantined or when introducing new chicks to the existing chickens.  

Inside the coop *

Most chickens roost when they sleep. The roosts do not need to be fancy, but you want to make sure their feet can sit flat on the roost. We used 2×4’s turned so they stand on the wide side. They like to be high up, but be sure they aren’t in front of a draft. If the roosts are too high, they can hurt their feed jumping down and get bumblefoot. A few feet up, just over our nesting boxes seemed to be our sweet spot. Also, you want nesting boxes. We have 5 nesting boxes for 22 chickens. They all use the same 2 boxes, which is just fine. You do want the roosts to be higher than the nesting boxes or the chickens may sleep in the nesting boxes instead of on the roost! 

Bedding *

In the brooder, coop and nesting boxes, you will want some sort of bedding. We use pine shavings from Tractor Supply in the brooder and sometimes the nesting boxes. In the coop we use wood chips, fallen pine needles and fallen leaves. If I come across some straw I have added that too. The deep liter method so far has really worked for our chickens and my garden! 

Food and water *

It is up to you if you want to feed medicated food or not. It is also up to you if you want to get organic feed or not. Personally, we go as natural as we can (so we go unmedicated) and haven’t had any issues. The only time that our food cost are crazy is in the winter. Our chickens generally free range from dawn till dusk and prefer to forage. They are all healthy and their eggs have a rich orange yolk. 

Side note on free ranging ~ You definitely do NOT want to use unnatural fertilizers or weed killers on anything in your yard. Chickens will eat anything! There are great ways to fertilize without using harmful chemicals.

GRIT – If your chick feed does not have grit, you will need to provide it to your chicks at all times. If you are feeding Chick Starter, you do not need grit. But if you are offering scrambled eggs, grass, bugs or other things, offer grit. If your chickens do not free range, you will also want to provide grit. I do provide grit in the winter for our flock. Grit is vital to break down the food in their crops for digestion. 

We have a large feeder in our coop. Some people keep the food outside the coop so it doesn’t attract mice or any other animal into the coop. So far, we haven’t had an issues keeping it inside and it insures that it stays dry and wild birds and animals aren’t eating from it outside. You have to find what works for you! 

We keep sources of calcium inside the coop as well. We always have oyster shells or baked egg shells. For the how to on egg shells, click here. We just put them in a small bin so they can eat them when they want or need to. 

Water is the source of life!

We have a large waterer that we keep in the chicken run. We do not keep it in the coop because we do not want moisture inside. Always make sure that they have clean water. We keep ours on top of a stand we screwed together with some left over wood pieces. This helps to keep it clean. 

Some other info about feeders and waters *

There are so many options for feeders and waters. While I have some, I don’t really care for the plastic ones. They break and seem to get dirty quicker. I really do like our plastic heated one for the winter though! Hindsight has shown me that most of them were a waste of money. Its metal for us from here on out! They last long, are easy to clean and have different size options. They are more expensive, but it’s better than having to keep replacing the plastic ones. 

Extras *

Along our chicken learning journey, there have been a few things I have found to be really helpful. I don’t list this as optional only because it can be lifesaving, it’s inexpensive and great to have on hand. VetRx, I’m convinced, saved a couple of our chickens.

The link above is for Tractor Supply, but you can find it other places including Amazon. A few of our chickens have come down with illnesses here and there. One was wheezing and the kids even said their goodbyes. We put some VetRx in her water and under her wings. We also put some on the top of her head. While we also gave chick saver, I am convinced it was the VetRx that saved her.  It’s not a miracle medicine, it is more like Vicks, but I have seen it work!

Optional extras *

A chicken run – If you are set on your chickens free ranging everyday, then you don’t need a run. We use ours if we have a predator come around and need to keep the chickens locked up for a week or two. I do think it is better to have one just in case. We have had coyotes coming into the yard daily around 10am the past month. For now, our chickens are locked up until noon everyday and then out to free range. Really though, it is your choice how you want to raise your flock! 

Dirt/Dust bath – Chickens clean themselves by rolling in dust and dirt.

If you haven’t seen this, it’s hilarious!! If your chickens aren’t free ranging, you’re going to need to provide dirt, dust, sand, DE (food grade) and/or wood ash for them to clean themselves with. If they free range, they can find spots on their own! This is important to rid them of mites, parasites and dead skin cells. 

Scratch grains and corn – We provide scratch grains and corn during the winter to warm the chickens up at night. Give some to them before they roost and their bodies will stay warmer while they digest. Other than that, we generally don’t to often. The chickens LOVE it, but it isn’t necessary for their health, especially with them free ranging. I try to spend as little as I can, so this just doesn’t make the cart to often. 

Mealworms are a really popular treat loved by chickens. I am not adding information about them because I have recently read that they can be dangerous. After more research, I will put out a post breaking down the research. In the meantime, I have not given them to my chickens. 

Click here for a free printable checklist!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RtYMvWud6qF63b8z8SCYo2YOdZYAIYrUDHTEbdldGnQ/edit?usp=sharing