Sunday, September 28, 2008

The New Chicken Tractor

Technically, these aren't exactly chicken tractors, but we don't know what else to call them. They were inspired from original chicken tractors we've seen online, but we do not put wheels on them. They're built with the idea that chickens can free range, yet safe from wild critters. Many times, however, we let the laying hens out and they roam all over the place. They know the 'tractor' is home and lay their eggs there. The bigger one (not pictured) has laying boxes. This smaller version was made from cedar posts we cut from the land. It's easy to pick up which is nice because it houses the Cornish Rocks and they'll need to be moved daily.







I don't know if you can see it, but Phillip makes a hinged door that drops down. This helps keep the chickens contained while we're changing out the water and such. We used some heavy gauge wire this time as well. Over time, the dogs and other nighttime critters push on the chicken wire and it really gets stretched.
I really like this one. I think they did a real fine job.


2 comments:

Michelle said...

I had no idea what a chicken tractor was until this post! ha! Learn something new everyday! I'm gonna send your link to my sister in law. They have chickens too, I'm sure she knows what a chicken tractor is, but I think she will enjoy your blog!

Leah said...

How neat! My friend has chickens and someday I hope we can buy land and have a few of our own animals. So...I'm taking notes. :) These "chicken tractors" sound perfect!