The Inn at Buff Brahma

Inn at Buff Brahma

 

 Bob’s chicken coop has a nesting box in the front for easy egg access. The door for the chickens can be seen on the side, notice the ramp up to it. This door is closed from outside the yard via a pulley system and we call it “The Guillotine”. The chickens are locked inside each night to keep them safe from predators.

Caught in the flash inside the nesting box in coop

One of Sarah's favorite chickens, named Hopeful

It has only been recently that the warming light could stay off at night.

 

Inside the coop are roosting spots.

A head count is conducted each night

Many of the materials used to build the coop and the yard were re-used/recycled, such as the window, the chain link fence, the RR ties, the fence posts, many of the 2 x4’s, the gate, the concrete steps leading up to the human-sized door on the other side.

Chickens near one of their feeder

 

We built the yard around the compost bin, next to the main garden. The chickens love being inside the compost bin, whether they are pecking and scratching or dusting themselves or simply nesting in there. The compost bin is surrounded by Stinging Nettle an herb with medicinal properties . The herb gets its name from its ability to really get you with a sharp sting if you touch it with bare hands. The chickens run around in it though as if it were grass and hide in it — they’re pretty smart.

Near the bin and stinging nettle

 

Bob hung the feeders off the ground, and gave 2 feeders and 2 waterers for 23 chickens, now 22. This reduces the chance for pecking.

We built a rather large yard for the chickens, giving them plenty of space to be chickens.

The two pallets joined together at the top to form a triangle is one of the chickens favorite toys in their yard. The pallets were also reused/recycled.

We feed them organic poultry feed from a local farmer and Bob adds granite grit, which we can buy from our local feed store. Of course, we throw weeds and bugs from the garden to them also. Sarah and I also dumped the old rotting hay from out of the dog yard into the chicken yard and they love scratching it apart and pecking the bugs.

The Yard at Buff Brahma