A Coop for the Garden

A small coop and henhouse for a small flock. Houses about six hens happily.

My husband built a chicken coop for our six young chickens that adds to my garden rather than detracts. To save money, we used recycled materials from the building of our house, and purchased some items (like the stained glass window) from garage sales.This project was, unfortunately, not a one-weekend project and it took a little carpentry “know-how”.

Because we have critters that would love a morsel of chicken for their midnight snack, the coop had to be secure from foxes, raccoons, opossums, coyotes, bobcats, and hawks. To them, there is nothing more enjoyable than dining on a tender chicken breast by the light of the moon.

A vertical sliding door to the outside run is closed at night to keep out raccoons, foxes, and rats.

My husband’s assignment, from his favorite client (me) was to (1) build a coop that was safe for our beautiful hens, and (2) build a coop that “didn’t look like a coop” (if you know what I mean). The results were great. I’ve planted vines that will soften the edges and by spring will make it look like it has always been a part of my garden.