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Building your own chicken house will save you money and give you the flexibility to build a chicken coop to suit your specific requirements. There are a wide selection of excellent plans available to guide you along the way. However many people fail to incorporate these three essential elements into their design.

Predator Proof: Your chicken coop and run must be build to protect your chickens from their common predators. Depending on where you live you may have to guard against foxes, coyotes, fisher cats, raccoons and skunks. Chicken wire all around the coop or a strong fence will help keep these animals at bay. For aerial predators such as hawks you will also need to cover the top of the chicken coop and run. Don’t forget about burrowing animals which will try and dig their way in. You will need to dig down about 12″ to keep these predators out.

Sufficient Light: If you are raising chickens for their eggs they will need about 14 hours of light a day in order to lay eggs. Less than this will result in a severe decline in egg production. Build your chicken coop so that it receives the maximum amount of natural light as possible, and ensure that the windows face the sun.

Proper Location: Your chicken house needs to be protected from the elements as much as possible. If flooding is a possibility make sure you build on elevated ground. If high winds are common, build in a sheltered spot. Also, in order to take care of your chickens their coop needs to be easily accessible. For this reason it is often advisable to build close to your own back door. A chicken house plan will provide you with step-by-step instructions to construct a home for your new feathered friends. To keep your chickens safe, secure and comfortable, make sure their coop is predator proof, has sufficient light and is properly located.