Mother Earth News, the very popular all things green and organic publication, is also featured in the Mad City Chickens movie.

If you’re evenly remotely interested or curious about raising backyard chickens, and you live in an urban or suburban setting, get this movie and you’ll learn something and be entertained at the same time.

Here’s a trailer…

P.S. If you’ve decided to try your hand in raising backyard chickens, check out this guide Incredible Chicken: the Complete Guide to Raising Chickens at Home in Your Backyard. (Long title, but an excellent resource!)

And another one…

I swear this chicken is laughing at him as he tries to get the chicken off the deck. Too funny!

Love her ‘I speak chicken’ t-shirt!

Of course, we all know chickens can also be raised on a farm; but raising backyard chickens, regardless of the regional location of your backyard, is possible.

I think the biggest hurdle folks new to chickens face is all the questions they have about getting chickens in the first place. There’s a million and one questions on how to raise chickens, and while there are resources available, not all are great at giving you the nuts and bolts, to-the-point answers one needs to go out and get some pet chickens. While chickens are fairly easy to care for, they are not as common a pet to have than say, a dog or cat. So folks naturally have more questions and are apprehensive about what’s involved in keeping pet chickens.

Yes, chickens can be pets! Of course, you can eat the eggs, and if you desire, you can also eat the chickens. But many folks keep chickens strictly as pets; pets who also happen to produce food via their eggs. It’s a win-win for everyone.

Thankfully, I found a how to guide that answered all my questions on raising backyard chickens, whether keeping them as pet chickens, or raising them for food – this book covered it all. It’s well laid out, covers everything you’d need to know about chickens, plus it came with several bonuses too, such as a printable checklist and several chicken coop plans!

If you are even remotely interested in keeping chickens, regardless of whether you live in the city, suburbs or country – this book is a must have.

P.S. What is your favorite book, or resource, on chickens?

Alright, the easy yet crucial part begins with planning. First, the area, then the size of the pen. The pen size usually depends on how many chickens will be raised. Look at the requirements for the chicken breeds you are dealing with; but in general, a bare bones minimum of 4 square feet per bird is required. Obviously more square feet per bird is better, some believe 10 square feet per bird is ideal. Birds kept too closely confined tend to peck each other and fight, not to mention the health issues that can ensue.

Novice or not, it is still better to start off with the most basic pen – using the wire and post design. Here, the materials that you’ll need are the posts, wire, and staples that can be used for fences. The tools are also basic namely a sledgehammer, the ordinary hammer, wire cutters, and crowbar.

Now that you have gathered all materials and tools, surveyed the area,  it’s time for the construction.

To start with, look at the ground you’re working on. Notice the stiffness and dryness. If it’s anything like that, you have to bring in with you a bucket full of water. This will help soften the ground. Pound the ground using the pointed tip of the crowbar. By doing this, a hole is being formed.

While pounding, occasionally pour few amounts of water in the hole to soften the ground. By leaving your crowbar inside the hole, pull your body against it. By doing so, you’ll widen the proximity of the hole. If the hole is prominent enough and is 8 inches deep, that will be sufficient. Make sure that the hole has a wideness that can hold a pole in place.

You can now put the post inside the hole that you have made, pointed tip first. Using the sledgehammer, pound the pole to the ground. Do the pounding until you are sure that it has remained firm. Sometimes, it is better to have someone hold the post for you to ensure better stability. Always practice caution and focus on what you’re doing because you might pound your assistant instead of your post.

If your first post is standing firmly, you can now start on your second, and third, and fourth, and so on. Give about 3½ feet from where the first post stands. That will determine elaborate spacing. To serve as a gate, let 2 posts stand about 5 ½ – 6 feet apart.

The moment you have firmly put all the posts in place, it’s time to put the wire around it. For this to be made possible, carry the wire on one corner then using your regular hammer, pound the fence staples at the end of the wire to the post. Once the end is tightly secured, unroll the wire going to the next post then staple the wire that touches the post. Do the unrolling and stapling process till you have completed wrapping around the entire posts.

Making a gate is also easy. All you need to gather are hinges, latch and a particle board. Start by cutting the board to fit the two ends of the posts. Now attach it together with the hinges and the latch.

Don’t forget the top! Chickens are prone to all sorts of predators, so covering the top of your chicken coop is essential for the safety of your chickens. Also, it’s wise to fan out the chicken wire on the bottom end of the sides and bury it or place larger rocks along the perimeter to keep fox and other animals from digging underneath your chicken coop.
There you have it. Raising chickens is easy as long as they have a safe, secure coop to nest in at night.

P.S. If the above instructions were not quite thorough enough for you, this ebook + the bonuses that come with it, should be more than enough to show you how to build a chicken coop and save yourself a boatload of hassle and money.

P.P.S Have you built your own chicken coop? I’d love to see some pictures!

Requirement #1

Regarding its design, the coop must be secured from any kind of predator. Every single angle in the pen – sides, below and above, must be structured to withstand the wrath and longing of predators who are always on the lookout for a free meal. When selecting a wire mesh, be sure it is the right one. Predators are more than one. They scour within the area of your coop unnoticed just waiting for the time when they can attack. You have to make sure that the coop is impenetrable because some predators like raccoons just reach out for their prey, easily.

Requirement #2

In connection with requirement number one, this is a continuation. Aside from predators, you have to secure the coop from those nasty rats. They burrow through the ground and come up from below. If the coop floor is not blocked, these rodents will slip into the hen’s quarters. Rodents are attracted to the food you’re giving your chickens and the droppings they excrete.

What’s more devastating is that these pesky rats love eggs. So whenever laying season comes, they gather too. Want to get rid of them? Good idea. But prevention is better than cure. That is why preventing them to come into the pen is better that getting rid of their presence completely. All you need to do is construct a floor within the pen, otherwise, bury a fence about 12 inches deep around the hen’s house. Be sure that the materials you will use for the fence and the floor is thick or hard enough for them to impossibly bite through.

Requirement #3

The way you build your coop must not be drafty or breezy. Subsequently, seasons will change and so would the weather. That is why; your coop must be able to endure any kind of natural effects.

Requirement #4

Roosting poles must be provided for your hens to slumber. It must have an approximate 2-inch wide rounded edges. You allot an 8 to 10 inch space between every bird. Put nest boxes to encourage egg laying. One nest box is equivalent to three to four chickens. Situate the boxes inches above the ground. Do not let it touch the soil. Place these nesting boxes somewhere private where no one can bother them while they’re doing their thing. Safety is the very first policy one should follow.

Requirement #5

Your coop must be roomy. Spacious. You have to allot at least 4 square feet for every bird, some believe 10 square feet per bird to be ideal. There should also be space where the feeder and the waterer can hang to within 7-8 inches above the ground.

Requirement #6

The coop must be accessible for the owner’s sake ONLY. Predators and rodents not allowed. Easy accessibility can help you clean the coop so that bacteria and bugs do not fester.

Once you understand the six requirements for a chicken coop, you’re ready to actually learn how to build a chicken coop.

P.S. How much planning did you do before you built, or bought, your chicken coop?