Can I keep chickens in a horse stall?

[fordtraktor]

Dumb question – I am sure I can somehow – but what would go in to converting an extra stall to a safe chicken place? My kids want chickens, I have an extra stall, and we have a lot of night predators so I thought keeping them in the barn at night would be safe. Not to mention our really cold winters – the barn would be a good choice for that.

But I don’t want them pooping all over or laying eggs in the hay that will then rot.

The stall has mats and standard size grills about 4 feet up and is solid to maybe 8 feet. Would I need to put a net on the top? Over the grills? The extra stall is sort of near a door so I am hoping I can shepherd them outside during the day and let them back in the stall in the evening when it is warm enough. Or will I need to cut a door to the outside so they can go in during the day? I could do that – standard metal pole barn lined with boards. It would be like adding a window which we have done before.

Do they need to be fenced all the time? I have an older moveable coop thing I could fix up.

Do they need boxlike things for nests in there? When we had chickens as a kid we had a special coop with raised boxes.

Finally, what am I not thinking of?

thanks for any advice!

FWIW, I rarely stall my actual horses. One mare stays in at night and another has open access to his stall. The rest come in for meals but stay out most of the time. The chickens would probably be good desensitization for them, it’s pretty quiet around here!

Another dumb question but my kids want to sell eggs to neighbors and I am sure a lot of our friends would be interested. How many chickens would we need to get a few dozen eggs per week? I am interested in fostering their tiny entrepreneurship and and have chores for them to do regularly, not all that worried if it costs a bit to get started. Probably won’t get them until next spring but I want to start planning if I need to do things like cut a door and whatnot.

[Sparrowette]

@fordtraktor

Dumb question – I am sure I can somehow – but what would go in to converting an extra stall to a safe chicken place? My kids want chickens, I have an extra stall, and we have a lot of night predators so I thought keeping them in the barn at night would be safe. Not to mention our really cold winters – the barn would be a good choice for that.

But I don’t want them pooping all over or laying eggs in the hay that will then rot.

The stall has mats and standard size grills about 4 feet up and is solid to maybe 8 feet. Would I need to put a net on the top? Over the grills? The extra stall is sort of near a door so I am hoping I can shepherd them outside during the day and let them back in the stall in the evening when it is warm enough. Or will I need to cut a door to the outside so they can go in during the day? I could do that – standard metal pole barn lined with boards. It would be like adding a window which we have done before.

Do they need to be fenced all the time? I have an older moveable coop thing I could fix up.

Do they need boxlike things for nests in there? When we had chickens as a kid we had a special coop with raised boxes.

Finally, what am I not thinking of?

Thanks for any advice!

FWIW, I rarely stall my actual horses. One mare stays in at night and another has open access to his stall. The rest come in for meals but stay out most of the time. The chickens would probably be good desensitization for them, it’s pretty quiet around here!

Another dumb question but my kids want to sell eggs to neighbors and I am sure a lot of our friends would be interested. How many chickens would we need to get a few dozen eggs per week? I am interested in fostering their tiny entrepreneurship and and have chores for them to do regularly, not all that worried if it costs a bit to get started. Probably won’t get them until next spring but I want to start planning if I need to do things like cut a door and whatnot.

Well, If you are going to allow them to free roam any during the day, you won’t have to “shepherd” them. Once they know they are home and know the roosting place, they will put themselves to bed each night and all you’ll need to do is lock the door after them. And there will be the odd egg around, but if you have nice comfey, inviting nest boxes, they will use them.

And if free roaming, you won’t stop them from pooping wherever they happen to be at the time. But it’s very good for them,they will help keep bugs down, and are marvelous fun to watch. Grass is good for them, but not too long strands, like unmowed Bermuda. That can get wound up inside and cause problems, so a mowed area.

They like a bit of sunlight to help keep their laying cycle in place. You may want to enclose the stall area with ½" woven wire to keep wild birds out of the feeding area or your feed bills will be astronomical. Chicken wire, I have found, will keep pigeons out, but not small birds like sparrows.

They will need a place to take a dust bath.

If you have broodies, you can swap eggs with golf balls and they will be none the wiser.

Yes, they will need nest boxes, and a separate place to roost with something under it that can be pulled out and cleaned easily. And you will need to figure how you will manage the manure, especially if you have a large flock.

[MsM]

My BO had chickens for a while. They had a separate coop though. The difficulty with free ranging chickens is predators. Once the hawks knew they were there, they stopped by to lunch on them regularly. Not all predators hunt at night!

[chestnutmarebeware]

You would need to line the entire inside of the stall (floor to ceiling, including across the ceiling) with hardware cloth. Otherwise, rats, weasels, possums, raccoons, etc. will pick off your birds very quickly. And keep an eye out for critters digging into the stall from the aisle or from the adjoining stalls.

It might be easier to invest in a purpose-built coop or shed that is more secure than a stall.

[2DogsFarm]

You’ve already gotten good advice re: converting a stall to a coop.

I’ll answer the “How many hens”:
Each hen lays 1 egg per day, not consistently, but usually.
And it can taper off once they age out - around 5 or 6yrs - although I’ve had older hens still laying.
So for your kids to have dozens to sell fresh, you will need dozens of hens.

I have 4 hens & average a dozen eggs every 3 or 4 days.
For me that is plenty & I am able to gift the occasional friend with a dozen if I haven’t baked with or eaten them myself.

[Sparrowette]

You will also need to check laws for your area. Where I am, I can give the eggs away without allowing the ag inspector in for random checks, but can’t sell without the inspection.

[Mango20]

As far as cutting a door in, you might have to if you are thinking of letting them out for the day without allowing them a way to get back in whenever they want. This will especially be important for egg laying (yes, you will need some sort of nesting boxes), and to get to their food and water. You will also want to roof the stall with hardware cloth, and put up some roosting bars for them to hang out on at night.

Do they need to be fenced all the time? I think that would depend on how old your kids are and how much risk of losing them to predators you’re willing to take. If they’re not fenced, you run the risk of losing one once in a while to a predator. When my son first wanted chickens he was 7 years old, and that wasn’t a risk I was willing to take. Now that he’s a teenager, an untimely chicken death would not be as difficult.

As far as numbers, as a parent, I’d say start small and see if the kids stick with it or not. I’d plan on about six, which is enough for a dozen eggs every 2 or 3 days, so they’ll still be able to sell a few dozen, but you won’t get stuck with a huge project if they lose interest. If they are really into it, you can always add to the flock later.

[fordtraktor]

Good thing we are planning this a year in advance! We do have a number of predators (there is a nearby hawk, we have tons of possums and raccoons and foxes. I am thinking I may have to fence an area in chicken wire including a roof. It may make more sense to just make a whole separate area.

[chestnutmarebeware]

Don’t waste money on chicken wire—it’s easily stretched and predators will stick a paw through it and pull the chickens against the wire. They won’t get to eat the spoils, but you still end up with a dead bird.Hardware cloth is stronger and has openings too small for any mammal or bird to breach.

Protecting chickens is an incredible pain, but they’re so much fun to have. You’ll be amazed at their personalities!

[Calvincrowe]

We converted the space under our storage loft (covers the feed room) stairs into a coop for our hens. We then cut a “hen door” in our barn wall, built a covered area right outside the hen door, created an 8 foot tall wire pen along the barn on the non-horse side. I do not let my hens free range as the predators (wild and domestic…dogs kill way too many chickens!) just decimate flocks. We do have a large grass area fenced for them that we let them out into from their smaller (roughly 10 x 30) pen. I’ve put my hens in a stall when we were cleaning/repairing their coop and they were quite happy in there.

Lights are important to egg laying-- I keep a light on in the coop all day and into the early evening. But…my barn is quite dark with the big door shut (we get a lot of strong wind and just cannot have it slid open) and I have no sky lights or clear wall panels. If your barn is dark, you might consider leaving a light on-- it will help the come in to lay.

Hens also stop laying when they molt, so egg production can taper off at points during the year. When I had 10 young pullets laying, I was getting roughly 7-10 eggs a day–line up buyers because your fridge will fill with eggs faster than you can imagine!!

[Bellathemustang]

This is pretty common, and certainly most horses are fine with chicken neighbors. But chickens can really decrease the air quality of the barn. Not a big deal in most cases, but if you have any horses with allergies, heaves, or other breathing concerns you might not want to risk it.

This is not a good solution for everyone, but I have a maremma, which is a breed of livestock guardian dog. I have 3 ducks that free range and have nothing but bushes for “coops”. He keeps everything out. I have never had to worry about predators since getting him, and we had eagles, coyotes, and fox.

I’m adding chickens in the summer. It is nice to be able to order the fancy chicks and not worry about a $20 bird becoming someones dinner!

[fordtraktor]

Thanks, this is all good advice! I have a lot to think about.

[TrotTrotPumpkn]

My friend took a stall and converted it for chickens. They don’t fly out the top and her barn is locked up at night, so she didn’t add netting or anything. I have a tunnel (rolled 4’ tall welded fence) from my chicken coop door that leads to a commercial dog kennel. The kennel is in a wooded area. I do not have a roof on it, it sits on dirt, and have never lost a bird there (6 years). I have lost a bird here or there free-ranging. Most of the predators come at night, when they are in the coop.

I wish I only had 4 chickens. I started with 4, have had up to 12 and currently have 10. 10 birds produce a lot of crap. While it is nice to give people eggs, I wish I had less crap all over in my yard. 4 birds produces plenty of eggs for my family. FYI, I only let them free range for a few hours in the evening when we are home. This also means they lay eggs in the coop instead of my window well.

I agree with chickens and air quality. They produce an insane amount of body dust.

Oh and if they free range, they may destroy your landscaping. Mine dig dust baths in the worst places.

[fordtraktor]

@TrotTrotPumpkn

My friend took a stall and converted it for chickens. They don’t fly out the top and her barn is locked up at night, so she didn’t add netting or anything. I have a tunnel (rolled 4’ tall welded fence) from my chicken coop door that leads to a commercial dog kennel. The kennel is in a wooded area. I do not have a roof on it, it sits on dirt, and have never lost a bird there (6 years). I have lost a bird here or there free-ranging. Most of the predators come at night, when they are in the coop.

I wish I only had 4 chickens. I started with 4, have had up to 12 and currently have 10. 10 birds produce a lot of crap. While it is nice to give people eggs, I wish I had less crap all over in my yard. 4 birds produces plenty of eggs for my family. FYI, I only let them free range for a few hours in the evening when we are home. This also means they lay eggs in the coop instead of my window well.

I agree with chickens and air quality. They produce an insane amount of body dust.

Oh and if they free range, they may destroy your landscaping. Mine dig dust baths in the worst places.

how tall is he dog kennel?

i could fence in an area next to the stall I have available. Then if I put a door to the barn it would all be contained and they could maybe put themselves to bed at night most of the time. I could let them free range when I am out feeding and riding to keep an eye on them.

i actually have a small chicken space in the building that houses my trash cans and extra freezer. It has a doggie like door with a thick plastic curtain. Will chickens actually go through one? It doesn’t seem secure to me but I have never found a wild animal in there so maybe. It would hold perhaps 5 chickens. Has an auto feeder built in. It didn’t look very used when I bought the place so I question whether the previous owner’s chickens used it much. I need to ask my farm helper who helped them too if they had issues. The coop is left over from them and I have a lot of chicken paraphernalia they left like feeders and lights and whatnot.

luckily my barn is probably 100 yards from the house and good landscaping. Will they go that far and destroy? Anything near the barn I don’t care about so much but the landscaping around the house is quite nice and I don’t want them going the 150 yards around to the back and getting in my garden.

i was thinking of starting with 10. Sales would be purely between friends and a kid thing for cheap prices so I would not really worry about an official business or ag inspectors. No one is going to go after an 8 yo selling eggs for $2.

any favorite breeds? We had Dominickers and RI Reds as a kid but I am sure there are fancier ones now. I want some5ing I can order sex selected because I don’t need roosters! My 20 acres backs up to a housing development…which is far away from the barn but I don’t want any complaints.

[Sparrowette]

I wouldn’t put my hens in a spot with something like a freezer. The dust and dirt can get into the freezer’s works and might overheat it, with not too good results.:eek:

[Megaladon]

I have my chickens in horse stalls. They are concrete walls with pipe on the top. I did put up chicken wire on the top part. They have a nice long roost towards the back. For my smaller hens, I use an old milk crate for a nest, the larger hens get this tub that is just a bit smaller than a muck bucket. Certain ones of mine free range, but this summer I’ll be putting a stop to that. Lots of poop on the back porch because instead of being out in the yard digging for worms, we much rather laze about on the porch glider!

I’m a big chicken fancier so I don’t really think there are breeds I don’t like. I will say I’m quite the fan of the English Orpingtons though. Large fancy birds and my rooster has the sweetest personality and is so good with his hens. I don’t think you can go wrong with a blue egg layer like an Easter Egger or true Ameraucana. They have cute little beards. My Welsummers are excellent foragers and their eggs are a very pretty terra cotta color with speckles. Good luck to you and have fun.

[fordtraktor]

I have thought of the Easter Eggers too. Cool colors might expand the market. I was sort of fancying half blue eggs and half larger brown eggs of some sort.

[fordtraktor]

@Sparrowette

I wouldn’t put my hens in a spot with something like a freezer. The dust and dirt can get into the freezer’s works and might overheat it, with not too good results.:eek:

Yes I would not want to really do that again I think! It looks like a space for 4 hens so too small. I was just wondering if they actually go through the flap door. If they do I could put one on the barn.

in fact, this week a threw a dead skunk (natural causes)in the trash. Pretty sure the chickens wouldn’t have fancied that!

[clanter]

@MsM

My BO had chickens for a while. They had a separate coop though. The difficulty with free ranging chickens is predators. Once the hawks knew they were there, they stopped by to lunch on them regularly. Not all predators hunt at night!

chickens are smarter than you might think, when our kids had chickens they were free range but always kept an eye our for the hawks then would go hide under one of the horses when a hawk was sighted

[MsM]

Guess her chickens weren’t as bright. Or maybe not as fast. Or maybe she had more determined or skilled predators.
Anyway the attrition rate was way too high and disturbing if the chickens weren’t completely protected. Between the flying and the digging predators, the chickens home really turned into a fortress before she gave up keeping them.