by Meredith Chilson Photos by author It was May 8 when our fluffy little chicks arrived at the post office. We settled them into their new home in our attached garage, within a corral of cardboard, under a heat lamp, and spent the better part of several days with our lawn chairs pulled up to […]

Story and photos by Karen Herring We began with a small coop that was very hard to clean. It was short and you could not stand upright in the coop or enclosure. We had seen a coop similar to what we built but it was also too short to stand in. We did a lot […]

by Harvey Ussery Photos by author Eggs from backyard flocks are some of the best eggs in the world. Those dependent on supermarket eggs may not even know what they’re missing out on. Chickens provide more food than just eggs. Necessary culling of the flock graces the dinner table with flavorful meat. But backyard flocks […]

Written and photographed by Steve Maxwell There are numerous benefits to raising poultry, and even city dwellers should consider keeping a few chickens. If the looks of the coop are a concern, a small coop with a touch of class and style is the goal of Mother Earth News’ coop design, which makes it even […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author When my husband and I were designing our coop we poured over the numerous free blueprints, photos and examples of chicken coops at BackYard Chickens (backyardchickens.com).  I’m amazed at how clever and creative some chicken keepers are when it comes to constructing their coop. I especially appreciate the coops […]

by Cheryl Long — Illustrated by Nate Skow Chickens are fun and easy to care for – and the steady supply of fresh eggs is an added bonus. I set out to learn how to make a chicken coop that would be secure, low-cost, easy to build, light enough to relocate easily and scaled to fit […]

Coop between the road and the hill by Meredith Chilson Photos by author We have 5 acres of land here: a long, narrow strip that includes our house, garden and chicken coop sandwiched between a county-maintained side road and a wooded hillside. Because of the proximity of the road and the fox den and hawk’s […]

by Jennifer Burcke Photos by author So, you’ve decided to enter the world of chicken keeping. Congratulations and welcome to the club. We don’t have jackets. Instead, we have chicken coops in every size, type and color. I think that you’ll agree that a coop is a much more useful. Let’s face it, chickens don’t […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author One of my favorite types of articles to read in magazines like Grit, Mother Earth News or here on Community Chickens are posts about different styles of chicken coops. It’s fascinating to see how each family takes a different approach to housing their animals. Whether it’s a collection of […]

by Meredith Chilson Photos by author Last Saturday was a perfect spring day: warm breeze, sunshine—I was up early with plans for the day. Laundry washed and on the clothesline—check! Garden peas weeded—check! Garage cleaned and materials laid out for making “chick corral”—check! Nest boxes cleaned in henhouse—ICK! Crawly things! Ick, ick, ick. My plans […]