# Coop Ideas for Dog Run



## jeffdbg (5 mo ago)

Hi Everybody,
My name is Jeff, and I live in Colorado. I'm the proud owner of 4 beautiful chickens who currently reside in a roofed chain link dog run reinforced with hardware cloth. Inside this run resides a cookie cutter coop purchased off of Amazon that is quickly deteriorating after two years of use. Before the winter moves in, I would like to build a new coop inside this run that will improve the quality of life for my chicks and keep them comfy in the hot and cold weather. While I'm not great at building something like this from scratch, I know a few folks that are, and they would be willing to assist if I can come up with a plan to execute.

Here are the dimensions of the dog run (Length-10ft, Height-6ft, Width-5ft). I would prefer to have the ability to walk into the new coop if possible, but I also realize I'm not dealing with a ton of space to work with. Please let me know if you have any ideas or can point me to some existing plans that would work for this setup. Thanks in advance for your help/assistance.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Because of where you live, I'll holler for @dawg53 so you can see how he built his. I didn't bother with a coop since I'm in S. AL. I just have tarps to protect from cold winds. 

His construction is straight forward and pretty simple to do.


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

You're not going to be able to have a "walk-in" coop with the size of your pen, IF you're planning to build the coop inside the pen. You're going to have just enough room to build a coop after you dispose of the old coop.
Personally, I prefer elevated coops, all made of wood from Lowe's or Home Depot. Elevated coops are easy to clean out. The height you choose is up to you, just remember your birds will need a ramp to enter/exit the coop.
I like to build them right at or just below waist level, I'm 6ft tall. 

You have a 5ft width. I would build it 4ft wide leaving one foot to squeeze behind the coop and scoop poop when you clean the pen.
You can buy a couple of plastic containers and Walmart for nest boxes and put them under the coop. 
I'll take a few pics for you to show examples of my coops. I'm not a carpenter. However, I build my coops to withstand cat 1 hurricanes or maybe a low end cat 2 hurricane. We've been through a couple small hurricanes and everything was fine afterwards.
Tarps around the pen will protect your birds and coop from harsh winter conditions and sideways rains like we get here in north Florida. They can easily be rolled up and secured with small bungee cords. Pics to follow later.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

It's why I called for you dawg. What you build can be done by just about anybody as long as they can tell the difference between a screwdriver and a hammer. And your birds are secure. And there's really no need to walk in with the way you build yours. 

@jeffdbg unless you're willing to remove one chain link panel a walk in coop just is not going to be possible for you and the birds.


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## jeffdbg (5 mo ago)

Thank you so much for this information. I'm still undecided on removing one of the chain link panels to preserve run space, but I look forward to your pictures to get a better idea of the setup. Thank you again for your knowledge and time.


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

One other option you have and it might be better than the first is to build your coop lengthwise along the fence (up against the fence), then you can have a longer coop. I've done that in two of my pens when space was at a premium. You could build a 3' x 5' coop giving your 4 birds plenty of space inside the coop. Elevated of course, with the nest boxes underneath the coop. the ramp can go down sideways parallel to the coop. Here's some pics to give you an idea.

The 1st pic are the plastic container nest boxes, just cut one end open and you got a nest box. I dont put anything in them except a plastic crate. The plastic crate helps keep broken eggs from leaking out in the bigger container most of the time. You can put a fake egg in the plastic crate, it'll get your birds to lay an egg in the crate. The bricks on top of the lids hold the lids down when chickens hop on top of the containers or when it's windy. Note the box fan nearby. It gets very hot here, not to mention the humidity.

The coop in the 2nd pic has double doors that open. Truthfully, I built this coop all wrong. This was the first time I built a coop like this.The only thing that turned out good was the attached nest boxes and the ramp going down outside the coop entrance. I have 2 fans installed in this coop that blow air OUT the vents, indirect airflow comes in the other vents. You never want direct airflow on your birds.
All vents have hardware cloth on them and flexible screen to keep out mosquitoes, flies and gnats. 
More pics to follow.


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## jeffdbg (5 mo ago)

I really like the positioning of the ramp...giving me some ideas. Thanks again for sharing.


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

Here's a pic of the tarps on the carport pen. I rolled one all the way down for you. The other two are rolled up half way due to showers approaching. When there's big storms coming, I drop them all the way down and are secured with bungee cords, same when rolled all the way up.

The 2nd pic is a coop with double doors BUT with the entrance door in the center, much easier to build than the previous coop. This is my favorite coop. It houses 4 Rhode Island Reds. It takes me no more than two minutes to clean out this coop each morning using a hand held soft whisk broom and dust pan. The poop is deposited into a 5 gallon bucket to be disposed of later on. It also has 2 fans and a light to see in the dark (3rd pic). The ramp you see to the coop entrance can be lifted and lowered so I can walk out into the pen for clean up.
Hope these pics give some ideas how you want to build a coop. I've put together all sizes of coops. I had one when I lived in Georgia that was 16' long and 4' wide. I used hay for bedding and cleaned out once a week was easy because I had installed trap doors to rake out the soiled hay.
My carport coop is 12' long and 3' wide. I use sand for bedding, also in the other nest boxes, all for easy clean out.
Good luck!


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## 4windhounds (8 mo ago)

All the ideas above would improve your coop life, but why not take advantage of either the property diving trellis fence (green) for espalier fruit tree or in that narrow space before it, on the back of your chain link coop wall and put in a planter of berries that would grow well in zone 5/6! The branches would weave their way through the fence and the chickens would be happy about it. Nasturtiums could be planted here and there between everything, ditto for other plants! Okay, that is if you don't position crates under the coop (brilliant idea, by the way)..
Can you show a photo of your entire back yard from a distance?


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## 4windhounds (8 mo ago)

Oh, I forgot to mention WINDOW QUILTS! Lived in CO for 20+ years and I loved that crazy, crazy weather! Canopies and tarps are great and so are window quilts. You CANNOT have enough help with the weather there!


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## jeffdbg (5 mo ago)

I can't thank everyone enough for all your advice. To increase the run size (when the girls are not roaming the yard), I built a new coop connecting to the run. Here are a few pictures of how it came out. 

FYI - The picture showing the front of the coop was taken before I secured the ramp.

Thanks again to everyone for your time and advice.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

That's all your doing. We just threw out ideas. We get stuck sometimes and can't see what is possible. We just changed the direction of your thinking and you came up with a solution that works for you and them. Nice work.


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## 4windhounds (8 mo ago)

Hey, that came out GREAT! Enjoy the Hen Den!


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