Best dog kennel coop design

[matt14132]

Hey there everyone,

My mother asked me what I wanted for Christmas this year, and she seemed confused when I told her I wanted a dog kennel.

I have seen lots of people using dog kennels as chicken coops. I already built a coop this past summer by myself and it was a lot of work. It kept me busy, but I am already running out of room.
I like the way the dog kennels look and they already have a door on them and it looks like it would be pretty easy to stick some wood through the chain link to create roosts. This particular one that I have in mind also has a canopy on it.

However, I cant figure out how I would build the actual closed in area. Like the actual "coop" part.
I turned to BYC to see if anyone has any ideas on how to do that or if anyone has created a coop like this themselves. I would love to see pictures.

Thank you
Matt

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

Are you going to put hardware clothe over the chain link to keep your birds in and predators out?

 

[aart]

Usually dog kennels are used as runs(where they spend the day),
not coops(where they should sleep protected from predators).

Depends on your climate...what is your climate?
Please put your location(state) in your profile,
then it's always there.

Either way depending on the type of dog kennel, they need to have other mesh added to deter predators and maybe weather.
It can get quite extensive and expensive.

Tell us more about your flock and goals, and post a link for the kennel you want.

 

[3riverschick]

Hi,
don't try to add the coop to the dog run . build a small Coop and set it inside the dog run . then put a wire roof on it and chicken wire over the sides of the dog run to keep out small pests.
Best ,
Karen

 

[matt14132]

Hi,
don't try to add the coop to the dog run . build a small Coop and set it inside the dog run . then put a wire roof on it and chicken wire over the sides of the dog run to keep out small pests.
Best ,
Karen

That's probably going to be the best option. They will be bantam chickens, so there will be quite a bit of space in there for my little feather footed babies.

I attached a photo of what the kennel will look like. this one doesn't have the canopy on it, but the exact size of the kennel would be pretty much an 8x8.

 

[aart]

Make sure the canopy can hold up to snow load.
Couple sheets of ply wood covered with a tarp might work better than the typical kennel canopy.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

I built my coop in a dog run that was on my property when I bought it. The 'main' part of the run is on a concrete pad and has a roof, and then there is an 'outside' part. Here is what I started with, and what I finished with.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

What would I do differently?

I'd have more run space. I have a trampoline that isn't used and I will be using it as frame work for an addition to this run.

I'd have a bigger coop. Cause of course we would.

I originally put deer wire, or bird wire over the top of the outside portion... When the leaves fell in the fall, it warped it really bad. So, now the top of the 'outside portion' is chicken wire.

 

[KettermanHillCoop]

I used a 10x10x6 kennel for my run. Here's some pics of the set up and roof. It's a work in progress...larger coop to be erected in Spring.

 

[JurassicBawk]

My whole chicken coop consists of 3 10' chain link dog kennel panels under my raised porch, with the back wall being the brick exterior of my house. I know most people don't have a chicken coop attached to their house, but after losing them to predators in the yard and because I have to hide them from neighbors, it works for me.

I extended the area above the fence up to the wooden deck with plastic fencing, put 1/4" hardwire mesh that was 4' tall on the fence panels from 2.5' feet up the fence down so that 1.5' was on the ground as a barrier for diggers, and then covered everything with a 3rd layer of garden bird mesh netting. There are therefore 3 layers of protection on the fence itself (chainlink, hardwire mesh, netting) plus mesh outwards to avoid something digging in. The coop is inside my fenced in yard with my outside dogs, so I don't worry about something digging in too much, but otherwise would have dug trenches and buried more wire for protection.

Their house is 4' wide, 4' long, and 3' tall, on a 3' platform. That gives them room below it for food/water, inside it of course, and they get on top of it to roost and hang out. I've got 4 Easter Eggers and 2 bantams, and the pen seems to be sufficient for them. They've got branches and perches to play on to keep busy, and I use a deep litter method that seems to work. Right now they're helping break down leaves, and this spring I'll dig out their coop to fill my raised beds and start over with the deep litter again.