Moving day

In honor of Father’s Day, I made caramel pecan rolls for breakfast. Hilda provided the coffee, and we had breakfast on the deck. Afterwards, we made the final preparations on the coop. Terry put hardware cloth over the inside of the window to be sure raccoons couldn’t get in. We filled the new 5-gallon waterer and put it up on cinder blocks. Terry put a hook in the ceiling for a chain from which to hang the feeder. Hilda put food in it and hung in up. No more kicking pine chips and pooping on the feed! I filled the grit station and positioned it by the chicken door.

Hilda hangs the feeder

I spread bedding on the floor

The view from the chicken door while the coop is still poop-free

We had a lengthy discussion about how to move the chickens. Hilda thought we should carry them individually from the garage to the coop. I thought the risk of having one start flapping and getting loose was too high. I thought we should carry them all in the cage. Terry didn’t think the cage would fit through the door. In the end, we carried the cage with the chickens to the coop and parked it outside. I picked up the chicks one and a time and tossed them into the coop while Terry manned the door.

Moving the girls to the coop

We took the plastic tray from the bottom of the cage and put the cage outside the chicken door. The books say to leave the chicks in the coop for a few days so they learn that is where they are supposed to sleep. I was concerned, however, that it would be too hot in there. The cage was the compromise. The girls couldn’t go too far from the coop, but they could still get out if they needed fresh air, and having the door open allowed a nice cross breeze through the coop.

Ellie was the first to come out into the cage. She was very excited about the abundance of grass and clover. Others soon followed, and before long, everyone was outside.

Ellie was first out. Bridget and Jennifer are in the doorway thinking it over.



More chicks enjoy the grass and clover. The chicks put their tails up more when they are outside. Here Ingrid (the brown one) demonstrates.



Everyone in the cage.

As soon and the chicks were in the coop, I realized that planning everything for full-sized chickens was premature. The water was too high. I replaced the cinder blocks with bricks that were about half as high. The girls found the grit station before they found the food. Afraid that they would fill up on grit, I moved the station next to the food. I knelt in the coop for a little while, directing the chicks’ attention to the food and water until I was convinced that everyone knew where these essential items were.

And the perch was too tall. I checked periodically through the day to see if anyone was able to fly up to a 32” perch. The girls were settling into the coop nicely, but resting on the floor. Meanwhile, I helped Terry plant blackberries and raspberries. After lunch, I built a ladder up to the perch. Ina and Sara showed some interest in it, but didn’t get above the fourth step. At the end of the day I had not seen any chickens on the perch, I saw a poop at the top of the ladder. That didn’t get there by itself!

The ladder to the perch. If you look closely, you can see poop at the top.