How The Hubz Built a Chicken Brooder in 6 Simple Steps
For the first time ever, we ordered chicks from a hatchery. We were told they would be shipped on “hatch day.” Ummm, okay. We were given our “date” and we waited. Because we picked such a wide variety, our date was 24 days away. No worries, that gave us ample time to build a brooder inside the barn. So here we were, 3 days till “hatch day” and we had yet to build a brooder.
The first year we lived in this house, we lost a few of our beloved Ladies to a raccoon. We had a coop built when we bought this place and before the latches were secure, raccoons found our chickens. Lesson learned. In 10 years of raising chickens, I have never ran into a raccoon issue until this house. Raccoons are a-holes. Thankfully, the Hubz took care of that and I got a few baby chicks from a neighbor who had over ordered.
I set up a brooder in an extra bathroom and put a sign up to keep the door closed. And it worked. It worked way better than the first time I came home with 6 chicks from the local hardware store and had to set up a brooder on the fly. We were living in an old farmhouse with only one bathroom, so the tub was not an option. I thought I would use the plastic kiddie pool with a screen on top. It was awesome!.. until those babies grew taller. Now, having a house with 3 baths, I thought we were “living the good life” having the luxury to designate an ENTIRE BATHROOM to 3 little chickens. You know how I mentioned they grow too tall to stay in a kiddie pool? Yeah, well they also start to flap all over the place… like out of the tub. Super fun to play with when you’re the kid. Super annoying to clean shit off of everything when you’re the mom. I announced to the family that I will NEVER have chickens in the tub again!
We are also lucky to have a HUGE barn and with some of our current Ladies slowing down in the egg laying department, I thought we could order some baby chicks and house their brooder in the barn. A really simple, temporary brooder. I shared my ideas with the Hubz and cleared out a space in the back of the barn. The Hubz stared at the space for a while and then shot down my simple project idea while pointing out that the cat will eat my flock with my design. He said he’d take care of it. I totally forgot about the cat. I guess having 6 kids will do that to you.
The design the Hubz used was pretty simple. We already had a full back wall and (2) main support beams that used to frame a stall; the original home owner had a few cows back in the day. Basically, all he did was frame out a stall, floor to ceiling and enclosed it with mesh cloth. Add a full size door on the front and, BOOM! you’ve got yourself a cat proof, dog proof, and child proof brooder room.
Here’s how he did it.
Material List:
- 2x4x8′ spruce framing boards from your local lumber yard. Our space is 5’x5′ and 8′ tall, so we bought 20 boards.
- 48″x50′ 1/4″ mesh cloth.
- Staples for your Staple Gun (to hang the mesh cloth)
- Nails for your Nail Gun
- Hinges for a door and a lock, if desired.
Tools List:
- Saw to cut wood. Or, have your friends at the lumber yard cut to size!
- Nail Gun or grab a Hammer
- Staple Gun
The Basic Steps (only if you know how to frame):
- Pick a spot and measure
- Buy any supplies you will need (see above)
- Frame your space. Don’t forget a doorway This can be the size of your choice.
- Hang Door. The Hubz Framed a Door. (see photo for detail)
- Hang your mesh cloth
- Step back and pat yourself on the back
I’m sure there are some of you who will be saying, “WTF? Seriously, That’s it?!”
Yep. That’s it.
