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If you are planning to build your own chicken run or coops there are things you always have to remember in order not to waste your time and money. For someone who has no idea about coops or runs, these are houses or places to keep the poultry safe and absolutely secure.

Buying readymade coops or runs is practical but definitely expensive and hiring someone to do the job cost money as well, not just in materials but labor fee. So what is the ideal thing to do if you are trying to keep your expenses down, what else but to build it yourself?

Keep in mind that you do not have to be a DIY expert to build a coop or run, as long as you are willing to try and remember to plan ahead then you can do it. The following are what you need to remember before building one.

• Create A Plan

In everything we do and if success is what we aim the only thing that everyone has to remember is to plan ahead. Planning is essential as this could give you an idea on how much you will actually spend and when you will likely finish the coops. In addition, you will already know the possible problems that you may likely experience.

• Select Your Materials

In every building or house the most essential thing aside from planning is the materials that you will buy. It is not advisable to just buy anything that looks and sounds good because it may not be ideal materials for poultry.

Chicken Coop Design Plans

This is perhaps not necessary if you are a DIY expert or have experience building a coop or runs before but if this is your first time, it is wise to put into writing your ideal poultry house. Remember, even real houses and building has plans to use as guide so that building these structures is a lot easier.

You may laugh of all or one of these ideas, after all why you do need to go through all these preparation just too only build a place for the chicken. Well, you will not be laughing anymore if you suddenly encounter problems or difficulty which I am telling you know will happen is you do not create a plan before building them.

Life is a lot easier if you organized and plan ahead, this notion is also true to building coops or runs.

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Chickens, just life humans need a place to sleep and make themselves comfortable anytime they want too. So it is essential that you make certain that their coop or house is well-built to keep them warm at night or when it is cold or raining.

If you plan to raise chicken in your backyard you have to think carefully how big will be your coop and whether it would fit all the birds that you plan on raising. Since most backyards are for personal consumption then you may have to give your birds a large space to roam around. What’s more, since some countries have regulations about backyard chicken grower, it is best to therefore check first their guidelines on coop to ensure that your house is following their requirements.

But to give you an idea already about some of the general rule on raising chicken, you should know that the recommended space is about 3-4 square feet and around 15 squares to provide ample space for the birds to run around inside the coop. Nevertheless, the best and still the wisest is the fact that the bigger the space the better for the birds.

Take note as well that a lot of old houses or farmhouse have old building that they do not use anymore, so should you decided to use this just be prepared to spend for the make-over because the old building will have to be fix and turned into a suitable coop. Although, chicken will not complain about the status of the old house or building however your birds could get sick because it is not cleaned or conducive to raising birds.

Moreover, if you feel that buying a portable coop is easier then do not be afraid to do so. They are more practical because they have wheels and so it is a lot easier to clean anytime. In addition, since chicken need to also dig, roam and scratch the land a small portion of your land can be converted into a run or place for them to do their stuff.

Nesting boxes is another thing you have to keep in mind when staring your own coop. this is a place for hen to lay eggs and so it should be clean and divided according to the right size as well. The common ration of birds per box is 3-4 and nothing more to avoid fighting.

Any chicken raiser knows the importance of coop and so if you want to become a successful raiser you must also know everything you need to know on raising healthy birds.

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Chicken Breast – The Right Way to Deboned A Chicken

The meat of a chicken can be prepared in many different ways. It can be baked, fried, steamed or just about anything that you can think of with a chicken meat. No wonder, it is no longer surprising to see dishes made out of chicken at every home and there are endless chicken recipes!

Chicken meat can be tender and dry at the same time, depending on how it was cooked. When it comes to chicken parts the most widely used apart from the wings and legs is the breast. The breast part is all meat and a lot of popular dishes are made out of this and because of its popularity the demand for a deboned chicken breast is huge. The only problem is the fact that if a chicken is bought already deboned at the market, the price is a bit high. So knowing how to properly debone the chicken breast can greatly save you money.

This article will teach you the proper way of deboning a chicken, and this method is so easy to follow that you will have no problem mastering the entire process of deboning a chicken.

So below are the step by step procedures of boning a chicken that you need to remember.

1. The first step is to cut the breast away from a whole chicken. Once the breast have been totally cut off, keep in mind that there are still tendons, bones and cartilage remaining in the breast that must be removed as well.

2. The next step and this is very important, carefully take away the entire wings of the chicken but make sure that when you finally separate the breast from the wings, the breast part must still have the meat.

Take note as well that the wings can be use as stock or added to another chicken dish to avoid waste. So never throw them away, a hot chili wings is definitely in order.

3. Next, slowly detach the meat from the rib part and with the skin side-up, use a small knife to cut along the bone length but remember to start at breastbone. While cutting, keep the knife as closely as possible to the ribs, while at the same time gently pulling away the meat using your other hand.

If you are a health buff, removing all the skin is important since a breast with skin-on gives added fat when fried. Now that you know the procedure of deboning a chicken, all you need to do is plan your next meal using the boneless chicken meat.

Have Fun!

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A lot of people find raising chicken fun and a wonderful family activity, apart from being another source of income. Domestication of chicken largely for human consumption has greatly evolved and now new ways of raising chicken has been adopted to increase production.

Most people have different reasons why they want to raise chicken but a good percentage of them simply enjoy living the countryside life, the air, nature and taking care of animals. After all, life at the city means living amidst tall building, polluted air, frozen food and abnormal heat that usually comes from too much carbon dioxide.

Apart from the joy of simply raising chicken, this is also a great activity and bonding experience for the entire family. In addition, having poultry can give you a steady income, supply of eggs and chicken for your family’s consumption. So in a way, you will not just receive additional earnings but also getting food and huge savings.

So what are the other benefits of having backyard poultry aside from bonding with your kids or wife and generating additional income for your family? Well, raising your own chickens give you assurance that your eggs and meat are healthier and safer. A chicken that lives naturally and free to roam around a good environment can produce highly nutritious and flavorful eggs compared to those chickens that are feed with commercialized food.

Another reason that makes raising chicken ideal especially if you live on the countryside is the fact that chicken droppings is actually good for the soil, as they act as natural fertilizer. If you also have a garden nearby you can use the droppings to make the soil healthier so that your flowers will grow faster and healthy.

Moreover, chickens are easier to take care of rather than dogs or cats. For one, you do not have to bathe or take them for a walk like the usual household animals. All you have to do every day is to give them fresh waters, fed and most importantly to ensure that your coop is clean every day.

Imagine this, every day you and your kids can pick up the eggs in the morning, clean the coop and fed the chicken. It is a ritual that will surely be enjoyed by each and everyone and the memory will certainly last forever.

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Hope you are hard at gathering all relevant information about building your own chicken coop. Here is something new which you might be interested – Building A Green House in Your Backyard!

Your greenhouse is really, really special simply because it is your own to build, care for and use! No matter what you build it with it is guaranteed to bring you joy.  Here, I think it would be good to go over some of the important considerations that could help you decide which greenhouse would be best for you. All the research you do would lead you to the very simple conclusion that a greenhouse that suits your pocket and fulfills your requirements would be the one you should opt for! >> Building Your Own Greenhouse

"A wonderful resource with handy tips, it answers all your questions…"

"…Whether you are a backyard gardening enthusiast or a commercial grower, it is indeed an alluring idea to have the freedom to choose what you wish to grow, in what quantity and when. With a host of modern facilities that help you optimize yield growing plants including vegetables, herbs, fruits and flowers in a greenhouse has evolved into a fascinating art based on the solid principles of science. This e-Book tells you everything about greenhouses from choosing the kind of structure that would suit you best to picking the appropriate utilities and plants.  A wonderful resource with handy tips, it answers all your questions right from planning to setting up, preparing soil mix, choosing plants, irrigation, ventilation, heating and cooling, pest management, and harvesting." – Rachana


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Here are some good news for new visitors.

We have launched our secret tips newsletters on rearing chickens and building chicken coops. Join a very exclusive group of poultry lovers and learn the insider tips and secrets of building a backyard coop yourself. We will be sending you coop building advice and tips so that you know what to do and what not to do when building your own chicken coop.

As an appreciation for new visitors to our brand new site, we are giving away a FREE Chicken Coop Plan when you join our private newsletter.

For more details and collect your welcome gift, visit here now:
FREE Chicken Coop Plan

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Calling all chickens, pets, poultry, eggs, chicken farming, builders and green enthusiasts who owns chicken coops.

We have just incorporated a new adding feature in our website. Yes, the good news is you can now add your own chicken coop picture and get them featured here in this site.

Showcase your chicken coop to audiences around the world now. The pride of owning a unique chicken coop must be announced to everybody. Let them know how much effort you have put into in creating and decorating the precious chicken coop for you lovely hens and chickens.

For more information on how you can send your chicken house pictures, go visit the Chicken Coop Gallery

We are in the process of launching this new chicken coop showcase platform.

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Building a chicken coop – re-use, buy or build?

Building Chicken Coop

Getting the right chicken coop is essential for your chicken's health, well being and safety. First you need to decide on the size (in order to accommodate the size of your flock). Then you need to determine the amount of laying boxes (depending on the amount of laying hens you have).

And finally, you'll need to ensure that your coop is fully secure from predators of the night, such as dogs, wolves and ferrets who can all dig, claw and chew their way past more than most people think.
When getting a chicken coop, you basically have three different options. You can either re-use, buy or build your own.

Re-using a chicken coop

There are many prebuilt structures you can consider instead of buying or building your own. An old dog house is a great example. However, you will still need to make adjustments, drill new holes, add more space and attach laying boxes in most cases.

Buying a chicken coop

Buying a chicken coop is a great option for saving a bit of time, and perfect for those who wouldn't know a hammer from a ham sandwich. There are plenty of prebuilt chicken coops available in a variety of sizes and features to meet your needs. The biggest drawback of buying a chicken coop is that you'll often be paying a lot of money that you really don't need to be, where the manufacturer puts their markup on the retail price, and uses materials that are really unneccesary. Buying a coop is usually left for the urban farmer with a small flock less rural areas.

Building your own chicken coop

The majority of chicken farmers will tend to want more flexability for their chickens. This means the ability to increase or decrease the coop size, add a run or widen the indside coop floor space for the winter periods.

That's why building your own chicken coop makes a lot more sense. Furthermore, it can be very economical and pretty straight forward with the right plans. You don't need fancy tools or a degree in carpentry in order to build a secure, spacious and modern looking chicken coop either.

Whichever method you choose, make sure that your chicken coop is both spacious and secure. Remember that wooden floors can easily rot, so consider building on a concrete base too.
Finally, don't forget to accomodate for laying hens adequately, with enough laying boxes and space for them to roost (and let's not forget, produce those delicious fresh eggs every morning without fail!).

Building A Chicken Coop

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How to build the right features for your chicken coop

Chicken coops are extremely varied, with no real limit on the design, complexity and features some people will consider. Everything from a simple wooden hut with chicken wire fencing, through to elaborate dens with high security and fancy egg dispensers.

Either way, there's no need to spend a lot of money and frustration building the perfect chicken coop. Once you know how many chickens you're planning to farm, you'll have a good idea of the space required.
From there, you can go ahead and pick out the key features of the coop that will be suitable for your situation.

So, what features are right for you, your land and ultimately your chickens?

For suburban areas, security needs to be heavy. Not just because of predators, but because of escaping chickens too. You may also consider the look and design of the coop too, to better fit in with the surroundings.
Rural chicken farmers would likely be more concerned with space, practicality and again, security. Remember – dogs, wolves and other creatures of the night can dig fast, and be under that fence in just a few hours or less.

To make the coop secure, make sure you cover the top of the coop, even if it is a high fence. Furthermore, try to avoid traditional chicken wire as the holes are large enough for smaller predators to climb through and get a free lunch.

Also, make sure you bury the chicken wire fencing deep under the ground where the coop is situated. Try to do 12 inches into the ground to prevent those midnight diggers from massacring your flock.
Finally, make sure you are prepared for the eggs! Laying hens, which are very common for most domestic chicken owners and farmers, need adequate space when laying. You'll need around 4-5 boxes per hen.

You will also need to give laying hens space to roost, because that's what they like to do most! Roosting space should be around 6-10 inches per bird, and around 2 feet off the ground (the same applies for nest boxes). Finally, make sure the nes boxes are around 1 square foot in diameter to give each hen the space they need to cohabit.

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How to build the right size right chicken coop for your needs

When it comes to chicken coops, options are plentiful. Whether you decide to make something from scrap material for a small enclosed space, or buy a more expensive prebuilt coop for a large field, there's a few things you'll need to consider before getting started with your chicken coop.

First of all, you will need to consider the key features of the coop. These are the size, protection from predators, roosting poles, ventilation, and nest boxes.

Will your chickens be living full time in the coop, or have access to an outside run or wide open fields? Will you need a moveable coop that you can relocate easily whether moving home or making use of fresh ground?

Once you know the answers to this, you can decide on the square footage, based on the number of chickens you have or are planning to buy. It's always better to go for a larger coop, so that you have the option for your chickens to breed or buy in more at a later stage. However, prebuilt chicken coops are often more expensive and quite often, you'll be paying too much for materials.

The general rule is that chickens which have access to an outdoor run should have 2-3 square feet per bird inside the coop, and approx 4 square feet per bird in the run.

If your birds are going to be couped up all winter, you'll need more space inside the coop, at around 5-10 square feet per chicken. More space will also help prevent pecking and fighting problems too.

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