chicken tractors anybody?

[hildare]

anyone got one?
how'd you build it? any good tips?
<3

[annethcz]

Mine isn't fancy, but it works well enough. It's a 4'W x 8'L x 4'H structure made out of 2x4s. It has chicken wire on the sides and top. I drape a tarp over half of the top to provide shade in the summer. It's not so heavy that I can't move it on the grass. It works well enough for my purposes. It will easily hold 25 chicks or 4-5 full grown hens for full-time occupation.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1...une2007026.jpg

[Farmer'sWife]

Ann, I think you've mentioned before that you use chicken tractors in the winter? What do you use for protection from the cold?

[lovermont]

This is the one we made and use during the day. (This is from a year ago, the kids were testing out the chickens' new run.)
At night and during colder/wetter weather we have a chicken coop that is stationary.

We're planning on moving to our VT farm (finally) in a year. We plan on having more than our 2-6 chickens we have in our backyard flock when we're on the farm. I think we will then make a coop that sits on a wheeled platform to move around to different pieces of pasture.

[camprunner]

This is what our chicken tractors look like.

[chantald]

Chicken Tractor

There is ours.. it works well.. is a beast to move.. we will modify the wheels this summer..

[annethcz]

Originally Posted by Farmer'sWife

Ann, I think you've mentioned before that you use chicken tractors in the winter? What do you use for protection from the cold?

Nope, I have a coop for my chickens.

As cold and WINDY as it is here, a tractor would not be enough for the winter. Not to mention that the tractor freezes to the ground in the winter.

FWIW, I have read about people using tractors in cold weather climates. They leave the tractor mostly in the same spot all winter and pile hay bales around the tractor to provide insulation.

[camprunner]

Originally Posted by Farmer'sWife

Ann, I think you've mentioned before that you use chicken tractors in the winter? What do you use for protection from the cold?

We use ours in the winter. It doesn't get to cold here but we do have a picture of some in it during a snow we had a little of a year ago and they did just fine. Only 3 sides of ours are open and there is a roof so that might make the difference. We also have a coop but sometimes use the chicken tractor in the garden in the winter.

[2M's Mom]

Originally Posted by annethcz

Mine isn't fancy, but it works well enough. It's a 4'W x 8'L x 4'H structure made out of 2x4s. It has chicken wire on the sides and top. I drape a tarp over half of the top to provide shade in the summer. It's not so heavy that I can't move it on the grass. It works well enough for my purposes. It will easily hold 25 chicks or 4-5 full grown hens for full-time occupation.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1...une2007026.jpg

Our's is basically the same, maybe a bit taller. However we built a coop into the actual structure. It is easily movable (2 adults) but can also stay in one place for a long time just fine.