The coop of all coops!

This coop is one of my biggest prides and joys that I have ever built!

Dimensions:  Coop structure 8 ft. x 4 ft, with a nine foot roof peak

Run Is 8 ft x 4 ft, with another equal addition in the works. 

I salvaged a large outdoor parrot cage from the junk, flipped it onto its side and used it as the structure for the coop.  Awesomely the cage is fully covered in hardware mesh so it is predator proof.

I built a three nest nesting box on the outside.  Dimensions are 4 ft x 15 inches.

I was lucky enough to have a neighbor who had a massive pile of pallet boards that were never assembled so that is what gave me the idea for a cabin style and I used it as the siding to the coop. At this point I had to use the four wheeler to drag the coop from my driveway to its permanent spot in my yard, otherwise it would be getting to heavy for moving safely.  (safely, meaning, when I drag it it won't fall apart)

I needed to build a run for the girls, dimension are 8 ft x 4 ft.  I used the old rubber wavy roof from the parrot cage and made half the run a shaded area and rain protector, the lower half I made a lift top lid for my own access.  I have used locks on every possible opening area. 

Time to add a roof.  The front I was able to puzzle piece a bunch of mis matched tongue and groove slats that my neighbor had laying around.  And a perfect size window for the girls to roost up and have a view out at night. But also serves a purpose in the winter months as extra natural lighting. I am so grateful to my husband and neighbor for basically doing the roof part for me.  I tried but was struggling with angles and was wasting 2x4's.

We got everything up and secure, and while I was contemplating what roofing I wanted to do, meaning wooden slats or shingles, my cousin contacted me and offered old tin roofing from my great grandmothers farm that was taken down well over 20 years ago.  I was so excited, we had to wait a few days to go get it so I took the opportunity to doll the coop up.  I built a couple small window boxes, added a cute set of antlers to the peak, and arrows given to me as a gift to adorn above the windows. 

The windows are on hinges at the top so I can prop them open.  As you can see I left all the hardware mesh on the structure so predators cannot get inside.

We painted some large rocks with the names of my hens. 

I love hunting so I added a set of antlers to the peak.  Also I had a solar light that I fixed to be along the ridge of the roof line and will light up for the night.  

Its time to add the tin roof!!  Im was very grateful for my husband coming out to help, as he has just had hernia surgery a couple weeks prior.  It helped me tremendously to have him do this part.

My husband also added a little left over tin to the nesting box because we had gotten some rain and noticed the nesting material was very wet.  Now its dry and protected. 

Inside of the coop I have an air purifier that I got from the good will a long time ago.  It keeps air moving and it does help filter out their dander.  I wash the filter every couple weeks, but once a week or so I lay a fresh dryer sheet over the filter to aid as odor and extra dust blocking.

I only have video cameras in the coop for fun mostly, and because I got them for extremely cheap at the goodwill.  I think they were ten or twelve bucks each.

The back wall is just dolled up for fun with tin signs and chicken pictures.

From inside of the coop this is "Sister" hopping down from the nesting boxes. 

This is popcorn coming out of the coop into the run.  I cutied it up with a little boots flag and made door curtains from burlap, I used a staple gun.

These girls tend to get silly and swing so I transferred their old horse farming swing into the new run. 

And there you have it.  Im extremely cheap and frugal, so Most everything I used was picked up off the side of the road, or picked from junk.  

Listed is my actual expenses.

Stain ($10.00) it was priced at $38.00 for the gallon but it was on clearance 

6 2x4's ($19.00) Home Depot

flowers ($6.00)

screws ($8.00)

total $43.00. not too bad!

Other items I have purchased in the past that I used for this coop were

2 video cameras ($25.00) goodwill

front door chicken compass sign ($2.00) garage sale

White chicken on nest box ($1.59) goodwill

Teal paint for windows and accents (free) from an event at ace hardware on weekend on free paint samples.

Locks and hinges (approx. $15.00) bought over time throughout the years for other projects.

Air purifier ($3.99) goodwill

My 2016 Hunts

 I started my fall hunting off with good success.  I was able to shoot my very first coyote with a bow.  This coyote came in sneaking up on a black squirrel and I shot it within about ten to fifteen feet of me.  I was sitting on the ground behind a fallen log.  I was so excited, I called my husband and had him come out to help me with it.

 It was minimal tracking.  It had only run about thirty yards and I found it in a creek.

I have since taken it to the taxidermist for mounting.  It will be mounted in a lay down position with its head up and will be on a shelf in our living room.

 I took my first doe in early October. Theres a bit of a story to this one.  I was up in an old, very dead pine tree that is not exactly safe to be up in, but it seems to be a sweet spot for me.  She came in on a deer run and walked right in front of me eating.  I took her with the crossbow and she ran about thirty yards and dropped still In my sight.  As I sat up in the tree watching her, a buck came strolling in and I didn't have another arrow with me.  For about five minutes I watched him go to her and sniff all around her.  He even ran off a smaller doe who was trying to check her out.  So I scurried down the tree, ran up the property to my house and grabbed another arrow.  Came back out and he was gone, but this time my husband went up another tree stand near me and called a couple deer in.  And sure enough a small buck came right in.  Within a few minutes I slung an arrow at him too.  Knock went straight through.  unfortunately we tracked him for much of the evening and the next day but had no luck finding him.  That has eaten me up knowing he could've died and his meat was wasted.  I felt like I had a good shot on him, but I'll never know.

Early November I was hunting again in my sweet spot, dead pine tree, and again with my husband in his tree stand near me, a small doe came in off a run in front of me and this buck came in following her.  My husband grunted a couple times and it got him walking perfectly in front of me.  I debated this buck for a moment but when he jumped and darted at the doe he was following I was afraid he was going to run her off so I thought "I'm gonna take him, it would be my first buck off this property". so I hit him with the crossbow and boy did he jump and run, and crash so hard.  He ran about thirty yards just out of our sight.  I thought he was a four point, but at closer inspection after finding him, he's a bit more of a small 7 point.

Finding him was a lot of fun.  Really good blood trail, it was completely dark out, and we just had our headlamps on.  He had run up over a hill and rolled down the other side so when I shined my light across the ground all you could see was his big bright white belly up!  I was so thrilled.  

My first buck from this property I've been hunting about 5 years.  I searched all over for the arrow and could not find it.  While field dressing him though I reached up to cut the esophagus and grabbed ahold of the knock.  The arrow was in his chest cavity.  Thankfully I didn't get cut on the tip.

 My last deer of the season was this hefty doe.  I dream about awesome deep snow hunting.  Nothing is more fun then watching deer come in from so far away and you can spot them from so far because everything is covered in a blanket of deep snow.  Everything seems to be so much quieter and peaceful in winter.  I was sitting up in my husbands tree stand for this hunt.  My neighbor was sitting in his stand on his property but we could still see each other.  We were texting about what we were seeing.  I had a button buck under me eating and he text that another was coming in behind be.  My back was up against a huge tree so I could see what was back there.  Out of the corner of my eye to the left I saw her walking in.  She was just to my left eating when I though, "its nearing the end of the season, I have one doe tag left, she's a great size, its a great night out here, I'm gonna take her". I usually sit with my bow or gun in a pretty good "ready" position so I don't have to do much moving.  I was able to get my sight on her easily and thwap!!  I text my neighbor that I shot the doe.  We sat for a few minutes and both go down and chatted.  I went back up to the house, made dinner, and my husband and I came out and hardly had to do any tracking.  There was blood spatter everywhere!!  Tracking your deer in deep snow is the funnest part!!  I had a really successful year of hunting and am so thankful.  My husband also ended up shooting a buck with a muzzle loader so our family ended up with four deer in the freezer for the year.  We couldn't be happier!

This is my nephew Lyric.  I was able to take him out for his first ever deer hunt.  He was very excited about it.  He lasted a full thirty minutes before he started yawning and was ready to go in.  

I had his cousin Jaden come out to get him to go back in, so I could finish the evening in the woods.  It was a very fun experience for him.  He whispered so quietly and thought it was so cool how hidden we were.