Looking After My Chicken Coop (Not as Hard as I Thought)

Looking After My Chicken Coop (Not as Hard as I Thought)

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Clean It More Often Than You Want To
This one's obvious, but yeah — coops get messy fast. Between the droppings, spilled feed, and bits of straw everywhere, it builds up quick. I try to:

Do a quick tidy every couple days (scoop the worst of it, check water/feed) Proper clean once a week — change bedding, scrub feeders, air the place out
Trust me, letting it go “just one more week” is how it ends up smelling like a barnyard got left in the sun.

Check for Red Mites (and Other Gross Stuff)
This caught me off guard. I didn’t even know what a red mite was til one day I saw the hens scratching like mad. They hide in the wood and come out at night to bite. Lovely.

Now I: Dust the coop with diatomaceous earth every couple weeks, Use mite spray if I spot anything crawling Check under the roost bars for clusters (they like to hide there) It’s not a huge deal if you stay on top of it, but if you don’t… yikes.

Keep the Water Clean (Seriously)
Hens kick up so much dirt, and somehow it always ends up in the water bowl. I rinse and refill their water daily — even if it looks “fine.” You wouldn't drink mud soup, and neither should they. Also, in summer, I put a frozen water bottle in there to keep it cool. Chickens overheat way faster than you’d think.

Predator Proof It — Even If You Think You Don’t Need To
I live in a pretty chill area, but still had a fox try to dig under the coop in the middle of the night once. Luckily it didn't get in, but it was a wake up call.

Things I’ve done since: Buried wire mesh around the coop edges, Locked the hens in at dusk like clockwork, Added a motion sensor light (might help, who knows), Better safe than coming out to feathers everywhere.

Some Random Stuff I Didn't Expect
Chickens put themselves to bed at night. Wild. They get bored. Toss in a cabbage or hang some old CDs — helps keep them busy. You’ll name them. Even if you say you won’t.

So yeah, keeping chickens has been weirdly fun. Bit smelly sometimes, and yeah there’s a lot of poop, but the eggs are amazing and the hens are actually pretty funny once you get to know them. If you're thinking about getting some — do it. Just clean often, check for mites, and don’t trust that cute little fox you saw the other night. It’s always planning something.