We have 2 young cats and (fingers crossed) a puppy on the way in 2021.
So who in their right mind adds to the chaos that is looming? I do. The kitties are still young and not yet curmudgeonly... It's the perfect time to keep introducing them to new things and add to the family! Besides, winter around here is a bit on the quiet side for me. Business is slower the days are darker and I have some more time to devote to socializing, training and simply playing with my fur-babies.
When the opportunity arose to rehome 4 ladies, I jumped at it. Visions of a cute coop, fresh eggs and that delightful clucking sound made me smile.
First up, Hazel, Jade, Buttercup and Meatball (we'll give her a nickname to get around my food-pet boundary issues) needed a new house. Their current coop is great but it would be an ordeal to break it down onsite, transport and reassemble it here, while keeping the girls in some sort of transit container that long. I did some research on size and climate requirements and went with a kit that is put together in Utah and shipped with instructions that any 6 year old with a drill could follow.
The kit comes with an tool apron! Sweet!
Being the person I am, I absolutely needed to match the coop to the house and therefore set about painting all the parts with leftover house paint. I had help, obviously. Wrigley was there every step of the way to make sure no tacky paint surface was left to dry without a little cat fur imbedded... to remind the chickens who was here first.
Step two involved reworking the raised garden bed that occupied the proposed site of the chicken coop. To be fair, given what I paid and how much work I put into growing herbs and a few veggies, I was ready to call time of death on that project. Seriously, those bush beans and zucchini's were like $50/lb and for that price, I want a 4* chef plating them for me then cleaning up the kitchen when he's done!
I didn't kill the garden per se. I just replanted what was left at the end of this growing season, into a couple of containers. The tomato lives on... until it stops producing. The herbs will be coddled all the way to Thanksgiving, and will find themselves on the inside of a 20lb turkey then.
I then took 3 layers of raised bed and turned it into one platform. With a few pavers set inside to rest the frame of the coop on, I'd say that is the short version of the story. You're welcome.
Then it was time to assemble. We picked an overly hot day and got to work in the back yard. I know what you want to ask... Did I put down a painting sheet on the lawn to stop the pieces getting wet or dirty? No, silly. I realize the coop will be wet and dirty before long. And poopy too! The purpose of the plastic sheet was to catch the screws that I drop. I'm just a bit of a clutz, that's all.
And wah-lah!
The ladies arrive around Sept 18th to their new address: 285 1/4 Martin Drive, Boulder. Stay tuned for little chicken portraits and omelet pictures!
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