Can You Make a Children’s Playhouse Chicken Coop?
If you have spent any time researching online in preparation for joining the growing number of people welcoming chickens to their backyard. Then you may have seen pictures on Instagram and Pinterest, and videos on TikTok, of children’s playhouse chicken coop DIYs. But can you really turn a children’s playhouse into a chicken coop? Should you really build your own chicken coop at all? Or should you buy one online? Read on to find out.
Children’s Playhouse Chicken Coop Considerations
Viral children’s playhouse chicken coop photos and videos certainly make the idea of using one to make a cozy home for your flock look like a good idea. Especially if you already have one that is no longer being used by the kids who once played in it.
However, if you are going to DIY your chicken’s new home in any way you’ll need to make sure that the structure you create is safe, secure and something that your chickens will enjoy living in. What should that entail?
Here are some helpful pointers:
A Chicken Coop Must Be Spacious
Unless you are going to keep just one or two chickens, the average children’s playhouse alone probably would not be big enough for most chicken breeds to live in comfortably. As a general rule of thumb, chickens need at least 2-4 cubic feet of space each. They need even more than that if you are unable to provide them with a separate run.
Where you could make good use of a children’s playhouse in a chicken coop set up in terms of space is as a nesting box. Chickens don’t need one to lay eggs – they will do that anywhere they feel comfortable. But having one often helps them feel calmer and certainly makes egg collection easier.
A Chicken Coop Must Be Well Ventilated
If your chicken coop is not well ventilated, it will it quickly become a very smelly place. Chickens are relatively clean creatures, but they still poop and pee – but also one that lacks the clean, fresh air that chickens – like humans – need to stay healthy. In fact, a badly ventilated chicken coop can cause chickens to become depressed and stop laying. It can make it more likely they get sick and even lead to blindness or death.
This means that if you want to use a kid’s playhouse as a part of your overall chicken coop set up, that’s fine. As long as there is enough ventilation to keep them happy and healthy while also not letting in so much cold (or hot) air that they overheat or freeze.
A Chicken Coop Must Be Secure
Perhaps the biggest challenge involved in building a children’s playhouse chicken coop is making sure that it is safe and secure for your chickens. No matter where you live, there will be lots of predators lurking around your yard that would be more than happy to help themselves to a free dinner.
Devise a way to ensure that any doors and windows in the playhouse can be properly sealed. Or simply use the playhouse as just one element of your overall coop build, then you should be fine. Just remember that any chicken coop needs to prioritize function over form. Your chickens won’t really care if their home is ‘cute’ or not, they just want a safe place to live!
