Monday, October 13, 2008

At last: a proper chicken door


Oh, yeah. I know how it is. You guys have been talking behind my back. I can feel it. You're saying things like:

"Sure, Danni's finally got her chicken coop done and that dang chicken run is, at long last, completely finished....but did you know those poor chickens of hers are risking life and limb getting back and forth between the two?"

"What?!"

"That's right! They don't even have a proper CHICKEN DOOR!"

"Gasp!"

"Why, I heard that, for months now, she has been shooing them back and forth with a small, green garden rake!"

"The horror!"


Well, you all can just stop right there.

Just like my girls eventually received a proper place to lay an egg, they can now enter and exit their stunning coop with style and safety!

But...all kidding aside, this may not seem monumental to most of you, but, to us, it is huge. Our build-it-ourselves chicken housing project has been going on since February and we are damn glad to be done with it.

As usual, there was a lot of discussion over exactly where this wee door should be placed, but we eventually agreed on here, underneath the window:

Spongebob, our Buff Orpington hen, is quite fond of Jim:

...and she assisted him in every way she could:

Ta daaaa....

A chicken-sized door:

See those cute, little, red tail feathers just disappearing from sight? That's Rose-Uppity, the Rhode Island Red. She was the first one through the new, not yet finished, door:

With a blur of hands and a bit of husbandly magic:

...the door is finished! Sigh. It's beautiful:

I absolutely love it:

...and the girls think it's super cool, too:

There is always a great deal of excitement and chatter about coming through it:

Even Roopert gets a bit worked up, but he doesn't lose his cool:

The morning routine:


This just makes things ever so much easier:

And my days of doing this are now over:

I'll miss that little green rake:

NOT!

22 comments:

  1. Her name is Danni,
    she's got a new chicken door.
    As for the green rake,
    it is no more.
    Wicky wicky wicky,
    Wuz up?

    Too much?

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  2. Your chickens are living in the Ritz-Carlton of chicken coops. Well done! My first thought when I watched the video was passengers jumping out of an airplane without a parachute. I think they need one of those cool slides :-)

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  3. Beautiful door, but (GASP) NO RAMP??
    Why I can here them hens complaining all the way from here;
    "My hips", "No, my knees", "What kind of torture will they think up next?", "Sombody call 911", "I've fallen and I can't get up", "Oh Darn, there goes a perfectly good egg", "I'm gonna sue if I so much as break a nail jumping down from here"
    "Well at least we aren't getting chased by that mad woman with the green rake anymore."

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  4. It seems we both married Jim's with skills! The door looks nice and is framed so attractively. I love the blur of hens coming out, 'specially that little Barred Rock in the first photo poking her head in from the side, "Whuh?"

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  5. Oh good, we can stop talking about you now ;). That looks like an awesome door and the video was great fun.

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  6. Yayyyyyy!! A chicken door. It is fantastic. And all the chickens jumping outta there? Priceless. That has to be be one of the best sounds ever as they jump and land in that gravel. Each and every one of them...I didnt even see any pushing or shoving. Such well mannered chickens you have.

    Good job on the chicken door, Mr. Jim. It looks great.

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  7. A beautiful door! Do they jump back up and go inside all by themselves when it gets dark outside?

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  8. Beautiful chicken door and house! I love the video. It looks like your rooster was trying to court one of the hens. Your chickens are pretty! I was wondering about the ramp too. Do they have one? Or do they fly in?

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  9. I love your chicken coop. May I please borrow your hubby? :o)

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  10. VERY nice! The siding matches and everything - gold star!

    Hooray!

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  11. LOL, I love your videos. They are not only entertaining, but I hear you greet your animals in them. That shows your love of them. Good animommy you are!

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  12. Ha Ha!! That's great Danni! We have yet to open our Guinea door which is up at the top of the coop!! One of these days I will have to do a video of my morning routine....yours is a tad more quiet..."tad" is said in a very sarcastic tone!!!
    Pats to Roxy!

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  13. I agree with greywolf...what those chickens need now are proper steps...and curtains - big ruffly cutrains. How do you expect your girls to do their best work in a place with no curtains or steps?

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  14. Dang! Those birds are just too posh for my flock! ;) Hey, don't let my dad rib you too hard about the ramp....I don't think he's installed one yet on his coop either!!

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  15. Just goes to show you how observent Agnes is, My hens had a ramp the same day I installed the door. :P so there AGNES!

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  16. HAHA, I love the video, it's so cute, how they all jump out, two at a time! AWWW! Very nice door. :-P :)

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  17. Notes from the ecofarmer. 1. DON"T loan out your husband, that's dangerous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    2. Your coop and door are beautiful, and seem to to work well for you in your space. If you ever find that predator pressure becomes an issue, we have a solution you should look at. http://www.robertsroostecofarm.com/2008/06/keeping-chickens-safe.html

    No charge since I "borrowed" the idea from another eco-farmer I know in the Cincinnati area.

    Hope you never need it, but...

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  18. What a great chicken coop. I'll bet if you hung a vacancy sign, you could rent it out. LOVE the door. Your husband did a very professional job.

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  19. yeah.....when was that? Last week? ;)

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  20. Nice, what a relief to finally get it all done. Although, the last 2 pictures are quite comical.....

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  21. Tell Jim it's simply terrific. What an expert and elegant job. The hours of labor were long and difficult after work, but look at the result!!!
    Now, about decor and flair- your girls really need the Martha Stewart treatment! Let me know what kind of material you think the chicks would like, and I'll get busy on my sewing machine....... And as for the candles and silverware and china....

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  22. Great job on the door. I love those photos of you with your little greet rake. Oh and the video is great. Yep they need their little ramp.

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