With backyard poultry farming becoming increasingly popular, people are now looking for a good cheap yet high quality solutions which can not only help keep their chickens safe but also provide other benefits such as protecting from poultry predators, and the weather. There is a lot of decisions that you must make before you make an investment into the kind of Chicken ark or coop. Scroll on down to learn more about making a good quality chicken coop in your backyard.

Often many people do not realize that chickens like any other animal feel happiness, fear, pain and loneliness. Chickens are usually found to exist in mutually exclusive social groups and can tell other chickens by their facial features. Left to themselves chickens tend to spend their days foraging for food, making nests, taking sand and sun baths. Research has also indicated that they have 24 distinct cries for communicating with their fellow chickens.

Top 5 Reasons to Raise Chicken

1. Fresh chicken eggs for free!

2. Chicken are exhibited at poultry fairs as beautiful pets.

3. Many poultry owners consider it as a very engaging hobby.

4. Chicken can help you in getting rid of weed, worms by eating them and also provide manure.

5. They require lower maintenance than, other pets such as cats and dogs, while being more productive in many ways.

If you want to be raising chicken for poultry then it is best that you get day old baby chicks from nearby hatchery or a local feed store . Your baby chicks can be kept in large cardboard boxes with holes punched out for ventilation. The box should have a soft litter, good clean water and plenty of feed. Do remember to keep a heat lamp over them as your baby chicks will require a lot of warmth. Remember baby chicks are very delicate and can easily get sick if not taken care of.

When dealing with grown chicken, it is imperative that you keep them in dedicated coops or arks. This makes sure that they have a place to stay and this will also provide them with a safe haven for laying eggs. After you have made the coop you need to equip it properly for them; you shouldprovide plenty of feed and water to the chicken. Also constantly monitor them for signs of illness as they fall prey to foul weather and cold drafts easily. Your coop will also need to be designed keeping these things in mind. Also cover any loop holes that your coop might have as predators will easily find their way into the construct. Predators such as weasels and dogs are skilled at using there paws to this end.Also if you can then you should provie the coop with a chicken run so that your birds can get plenty of exercise.

Click here to learn how to make a beautiful Chicken Coop that your neighbors will envy!

There are primarily three types of Chicken Coops to choose from. Lets take a look at each of them and how you can benefit from them.

The Chicken Tractor

A Chicken tractor is the smallest chicken coop and is designed so that it may keep around 3 or 4 birds and be moved around a backyard by a single man. These are also referred to as Chicken Ark. In recent times Chicken tractors are becoming very popular among poultry enthusiasts and farmers alike because many of the important benefits that they offer. Typically Chicken tractors are 4 feet long and 3 feet wide while being 3 feet high. They have a “no floor” arrangement so that the birds inside can have easy access to the grass below.

Why a Chicken Tractor is so important

Chicken tend to eat grass weed, pests and bugs and a chicken tractor is designed to keep them confined to a small area so that they may "work" within it. Thus when you place a Chicken tractor in a place in your backyard the chicken will get rid of any weeds or pests they may come across. This saves a lot of time and energy. Also the chicken droppings will provide your soil with nitrogen rich manure. However you must remember that chicken tend to scratch the top soil away for taking sand baths if left on a place for too long, so be sure to “drive” the tractor around your backyard so that all the corners may benefit.

Medium and Large Chicken Coops

These are best suited to you if you have a poultry of over 6 or 10 birds and will like to provide an area of 30 to 40 square feet (or more). These are stationary constructions and unlike a chicken tractor once built cannot be moved from one place to the next. So be careful where you plan to install one. Aesthetics also play an important role and if you are living in a city then you will want to get something which will go with your backyard and home. Finally one of the most ignored things is the “neighbors”. Too many times people set up a Chicken Coop in place where all the noise that the chicken cause end up terribly disturbing the good people in their neighborhood.

An important benefit that is offered is that the larger chicken coops can be equipped with a chicken run in front. This acts like a "porch" for the chicken who can wander outside for some air and sunshine (which is very important for them) while remaining safe from predators.

Click here to learn how to make a beautiful Chicken Coop that your neighbors will envy!

Planning is an all important aspect of any commitment and your chicken coop needs this element to deliver the satisfaction that you desire. Before you get started get a pen and paper and consider the following and chalk out the path best suited for the job.

Where your coop will go: This means where in your backyard will your coop be best suited. The factors involved here are:

a. The size of your Backyard.
b. Where you live.
c. Your neighbors.

If you have a reasonably sized backyard then you can take liberties to make a chicken coop where you see fit, also if you are a resident of a city then aesthetics will automatically become an important aspect here and you will want to design a coop that you can be proud of. Of course living in a country side does not mean that you shouldnt make a good looking coop, but it will probably be down in the list of priorities as a good design will cost more than a simple sober one. Living in the city also means that you have to take care that your neighbors are not disturbed by all the noise that your chickens will cause.

The Design of the Coop: The coop should be designed keeping these things in mind:

a. The size of your poultry.
b. The weather of the place where you live.
c. Predators that might become or already are trouble.
d. Your financial commitment.

You need to ask some important questions to yourself here like: How can I keep my birds safe from the draft? Do I need to insulate the coop? What kind of predators do I face a threat from? Are these land or air based? What kind of materials are best suited for the coop that I will be making. After you have figured out these you can be in a better position to make your coop. I have discussed these factors in greater detail on my page here.

Do not feel restricted by this. The more you keep in your mind while starting out, the more satisfactory the end product will be.