January 17, 2011

A coop with a view

Since he built the Chicken Chalet, Neal has been saying he needs to add a window - not necessarily for ventilation because we have plenty of that, but for light.  The girls need all the light they can get in the wintertime to help them produce eggs.  It would also be nice for those bitter cold days when they refuse to leave the warmth of their coop.  A couple of weeks ago, Neal happened upon the perfect-sized, double pane window for less than $10 at one of our favorite places.

Once the weather warmed up a tad, he got busy installing the window in the door. Having it in the door will allow us to check on the birds after dark without opening the door and will give them the warmth of the morning sun.


Here is the piece of door he cut out to make room for the window.  This gives you a good idea how much insulation we had added to the entire coop.


Neal measured and cut the hole just the right size for the window, then he added trim both inside and out.


Now, the girls have a cozy insulated window with a view.  Spoiled birds.


And, speaking of spoiled birds...I was so excited to find a place in town that carried the Purina Flock Block.  I really wanted to get one of these for the girls because it is chock full of vitamins, minerals and supplements that are beneficial to them, especially during the winter and during molting.


So, what did the girls do when I presented them with this 25-pound block of nutritious goodness?  They ran away from the coop as if they were being chased by aliens, and they haven't touched the block once.  Dang silly birds.  Anyone else's chickens act scared of a flock block?  Any suggestions how I can entice them to start pecking at it?

4 comments:

Staci@LifeAtCobbleHillFarm said...

Ha! This is exactly where the connotation "chicken" comes from. They are scared of anything new, aren't they? Can you put greens or anything they might be familiar with on it? Cooked spaghetti noodles are always a hit. Once you get one to try it I'm sure the others will follow.
Good luck!!
Staci

morningbrayfarm said...

Aaw! They must positively, absolutely love their window!

basicliving@backtobasicliving.com said...

The window is wonderful! What a great idea to put it in the chicken door. Are they doing any better with the flock block now?

Lilla said...

Staci, no luck enticing the hens to the flock block. I've tried scattering sunflower seeds on top, which they devoured, but they won't touch the actual block. I'll have to try the noodles and see if that will do the trick.

Justina, they do like their window and having access to extra daylight is keeping them producing eggs. A bonus for all of us!

Penny, the window adds so much more light to the coop. I think the girls really like it. Nope, no luck with the flock block. Silly birds.

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