Chicken Check-in

I cannot believe how much the chicks have grown in just a few weeks! As they continue getting bigger, we realized we needed a larger home for them. After some research, we decided on this chicken coop from Innovation Pet.

We had four main criteria that the coop needed to ensure it would fit our needs.

SIZE

It needed to be an appropriate size. I definitely don’t anticipate on growing our brood, but I wanted a life-time coop rather than having to purchase multiple coops. This model is designed to house 8 chickens which means our four girls should have plenty of room. It includes an above ground “house” that is over five square feet of space and an attached run that is more than eleven square feet of space.

ACCESS

It needed to have an easily accessible way to gather eggs. I plan on egg-gathering to be one of the girls' chores, so an easy way to gather was vital. The Farmhouse Coop has a latched door in the back that provides great access to the tree nesting boxes. We will use small baskets and straw to fill the nesting boxes to make it a comfortable space and make cleanup easier, too.

CLEANLINESS

It needed to be easy to clean. Luckily, this coop has a drawer that pulls out under the roosting bars and can be sprayed down. The run will be on the ground and will not need to be cleaned separately. The coop itself is somewhat small in terms of me being able to climb in there, but there are multiple doorways that will allow us to clean up and spot clean as needed.

SAFETY

It needs to be a safe place for the girls to live full-time. Since we live in town, there is less threat of predators, but they are still a risk. When reading the online reviews of this coop, one area that received negative feedback was the quality of material. This was a major factor in our decision because we wanted a safe but also budget-friendly coop. From previous experience, the materials to build the indoor pigpen (which was not very intricate) was nearly $150. To build a coop and run that met all of our specifications would be much more expensive. Luckily though, Boots is super handy and was able to improvise and enhance the provided materials to make a sturdier coop.

Even though the chickens are getting bigger, they have not fully feathered, so they are still susceptible to the cold. Lately, the weather has been rather rainy and chilly, so we are housing the coop in the garage. While they may not be officially “outside,” the ladies definitely seem to be enjoying the extra space.

Darla

Goldie

The Twins: Brown & Freckle-ina

Comments

First Day of Fall

Happy first day of fall everyone! We are celebrating with some work on the farm. Last night, our high school helpers took apart all of the irrigation pipe, and today we will load it up to put away. On our farm, the majority of the fields are watered with sprinkler irrigation that looks like this: Photo credit: Taylor Shea Goldenstein However, in the corner areas, we use irrigation pipe that runs from a well. The water runs down the rows and must be set to alternate every day. This process is done by hand and is one of our favorite summertime activities as you can see: Setting water on soybean field 2016 Checking the rows in a corn field 2015 Playing in the mud 2014 The weather here was cool and misty - this morning - so I planned on eating potato soup for dinner. By day's end though the weather heated up too much for soup, but I am sure I will get the chance to make it soon. Instead, the kids enjoyed some time playing.

Pumpkin Spice No Bake Cookies

I don't want to go all pumpkin spice crazy on everyone, but I definitely enjoy myself some pumpkin spice. After seeing a picture of these gooey cookies on Facebook, I figured they would be a perfect fall-themed treat. Yumminess! I snagged the recipe from Once a Month Meals, so you can get the original here . My favorite part about no bake cookies (besides being pumpkin spice flavored) is that the girls can help make them! First, we gathered our ingredients & supplies: 1 1/2 cups white sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 3/4 cup butter 2/3 cup milk 3 1/3 ounces of instant Pumpkin Spice Pudding Mix 1 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract 3 1/2 cups Quick Cook Rolled Oats waxed paper medium sauce pan silicone mixing spatula teaspoon wet and dry mixing cups clean silverware teaspoon for scooping Next, we began cooking: 1. In a saucepan, combine sugars, butter, and milk. 2. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for two minutes. 3. Remove from heat and add p...

Beet harvest 2016

Sugar beet harvest is a crazy time on our farm with early mornings and late nights. I am at school or at home with the kids for the majority of harvest, so Boots and our truckers were my official photographers. Tractor with Digger & Loaded Trailer Sugar beets are a root crop, so they grow underground. The harvesting process begins with the defoliating tractor which rips the leaves off of the root. Field of beets 1/2 defoliated and 1/2 not yet defoliated Tractor and defoliator Defoliated beet Next, the beet digger uses a two part system to pull the beets up and run them through scrub rollers. These rollers then push the beets back to the elevator chain belt and into the tank. There are also Ferris wheel style diggers that circulate the beets into the tank. Front view of Digger Back view of Digger Ferris wheel style digger When the digger is full, it unloads into a trailer pulled by a semi. We use cage trailers which tip to unload,...

Family Farm Fun

Search This Blog