We’ve needed a bigger coop for a few years now.  My sweet husband and mother-in-law went in together to get me the one pictured below for my birthday one year.  It has served its purpose well, and provided a safe place for our grow-outs.  When any of our girls decide to hatch eggs, it has been the perfect space to put them so they can raise their babies undisturbed.  I’ve loved it and will continue to use it for grow-outs and broody mamas.  But ya’ll….chicken math.  At one point in my life I’m quite embarrassed to say I had chickens living under my porch!!!  It was time for a new coop.

The above chicken tractor is from Mickeys Coops.  I found him on a group page for fellow chicken lovers that I follow on Facebook.  The tractor (another term for a mobile chicken coop) is very good quality and was sold and delivered to us at an affordable price.  After 5 or 6 years it is still in great condition and keeps our younger birds safe and dry.  Mickey has moved further away from us (now in Beaverdam, VA) but he is a wonderful resource if you’re close by.  This one will comfortably hold 4 or 5  full size birds and can be moved daily, with ease, to fresh pasture.

While my first wish was to build a larger coop myself, time is the enemy in our household, unfortunately.  With full-time jobs, pets galore and my own brood there just isn’t enough time in the day for that.  I looked around everywhere and found this coop gently used for a great price!  I am obsessed with it and cannot wait to fill it with new baby peeps.  It is SO CUTE.

 

If that one is out of budget, this one is cute and functional as well.  I needed a large coop….because again…chicken math.  But if you’re just getting into birds, this one has good reviews, is on sale ($100 off!) and would make a great starter addition to your homestead.

Utimately, I think the kit coops are a temporary solution as quality is not quite the same as it would be if you built it yourself or purchased from a builder.  HOWEVER, given our time dilemma, budget and immediate need for more room, I think we did good finding the perfect coop for now… until chicken math strikes again!