Now there are several reasons to like these enclosures:
- Hens get fresh air and fresh food daily (new day = new spot)
- New fresh spot means that it is free of hen droppings accumulating over several days/weeks
- They are fertilizing each new patch of land day by day
- The little guys get to travel (hey, they don't have facebook, so let them live a little)
Most folks who live in rural areas who dream of farming may be on the verge of getting some chickens. Does that sound like you? If so, you may wonder about the expense of either purchasing or acquiring a large commercial hen enclosure like the one shown above.
The trick with farming is to ease your way into it. Start out small and take baby steps, just like in What About Bob...
Recently I was at an open house (open farm?) over at Squash Hollow Farm in New Milford, CT. The owners, Austin and Kendra Martin, are very nice folks who have also eased into farming and have really done things right. If you are in or around the New Milford, CT area you should really drop by and get to see what they have been able to do.
What really encouraged me was how they used some conventional ideas but innovated them to work for their specific needs. Here is a quick example: They wanted to have an enclosure for some of the hens that were not quite full grown, however building a monster sized mobile enclosure was over kill. Instead, look at what they created to fit their needs:
This is two views of the same pen. It is small enough to drag around easily, while having plenty of room for the little ladies to play in the sun, or sneak inside if they like. Fresh food for the chicks, and fresh fertilizer for the lawn, what could be better?
This is just one clever example of what any homeowner could put together in their spare time, without having to necessarily spend a fortune on a gigantic hen enclosure.
No comments:
Post a Comment