by
Wags » Mon Nov 19, 2007 5:21 pm
A chicken tractor is a moveable coop, I move mine daily, some folks do it less often. It lets the chicken's get fresh greens, bugs etc, but keeps them safe from predators like the neighbors cats or in our case since we are in the country - coyotes. It also keep my goats from getting into the chicken feed which can be potentially lethal for goats. On warm afternoons I put the feed up and let the chickens have the run of the whole pasture - all but one stupid hen will go back into the coop when I call - she has to run around it a few dozen times before sneaking in the back door. I keep the chickens for eggs and the goats for dairy. And they both have a by-product that works wonders in the garden.
(Oh and did I mention that is another area I don't have to mow!)
This is the tractor I built this past spring:
Unfortuantely the stray rooster that is pictured disappeared shortly before the coop was done - he was such a nice friendly fellow. My current roo wasn't planned, I was supposed to be getting all pullets, but one of the 12 turned out to be a little cocky.