Recycled Trampoline = Chicken Tractor

We were inspired by our friends The Wyatt Life ( / @jake-sz2ij ) to get ourselves a thrifty little chicken tractor. We found an old trampoline for free on the side of the road and this is what happened.
Self Tapping Screws: amzn.to/3eeFsil
~~ Homestead Life Savers ~~
Parkmak Solar Pak 6 : amzn.to/2QGolw9
Dewalt 20v Drill & Impact Driver : amzn.to/2vNpg6E || ebay.to/2WfgBCn
~~ Camera Equipment ~~
Blackmagic Pocket 4K Cinema Camera: amzn.to/2vNpg6E
Panasonic GX85: amzn.to/2y49XqY || ebay.to/2TSbQN7
Lumix 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 Lens : amzn.to/3duQMqH || ebay.to/2RMrYlI
Sony ICD-UX560: amzn.to/2xZ5Dcl || ebay.to/2F6lbNJ

[@cindieryan446]

I love seeing my normal American brethren kicking it on survival and old fashioned ingenuity!

[@vkaygee]

So do they stay there 24/7? No coop for roosting or laying eggs? I’m thinking of converting our old trampoline into a chicken coop and we live in a subdivision so any suggestions are appreciated!

[@eternalharvestfarm]

Yep, we just kept them in there 24/7. Since they were just meat birds we didn't have to worry about laying eggs. I know there are people out there that do chicken tractors with their egg layers, but I'm curious how they handle the eggs as well. We didn't give them anything to roost on and they were fine. I suppose you might be able to figure out a way to put in a little roost if you wanted to though.

[@cttaylor01]

Joe Saladin would be happy!

[@beckymay439]

Im planning on making one of these today for the roosters i hatched out this spring. How did it fare with the predators? Im trying to figure out how i can put a skirt on it and still drag it around. (Using hardware cloth, not poultry net)

[@ryanbrenner824]

I built one but flipped the trampoline upside down. That way you can secure the bottom wire all the way around and then you can make a gate to get in and out. mainly using it for young birds until they catch up in size to the other free range chickens n ducks.

[@eternalharvestfarm]

That sounds like a really good idea!

[@Jake-sz2ij]

That is awesome you guys great trampoline score! Thank you so much for the shout-out also you guys rock

[@alexmuolo711]

I think it’s a good idea

[@wonderingwoman9977]

We are closing on our homestead in a few weeks. We have an old trampoline. This was excellent! Thank you. Subbed! @happyfeet_homestead

[@eternalharvestfarm]

Congrats! And thank you. Glad you liked it. KZbin is full of great ideas!

[@ambermahieu7842]

I want to do this for meat chickens. What did you do about water and feed? I am pregnant so climbing in and out /over to fill water and feed everyday isn’t going to happen. I was thinking of PVC pipes and pour it into it?

[@eternalharvestfarm]

Yeah we just dumped feed over on the ground and had a waterer we took in and out. Had a removable top flap on one side. You could do a PVC trough and send the pipe through the side chicken wire. We did that on an old chicken house where the pipe ran through the side so we could fill it from the outside. On that we put the little water nipples in the PVC.

[@cttaylor01]

Like you said, it's perfect for meat birds.

[@eternalharvestfarm]

It worked great! The only hard part was getting them out of the tractor come butchering time haha

[@TheBIGCHIEF6767]

Definitely a Marylander. I know that accent from anywhere. 😉

[@barbaraarrington9146]

Why so far from your house and right next to a highway?

[@eternalharvestfarm]

I guess why not? But I wouldn't call that far from our house, like half the distance that the pigs are and that ain't no highway it's next to. Just your typical back road. Highway is on the other side of that field.

[@annamineer2521]

Where are the wheels? How are you going to move it?

[@eternalharvestfarm]

We didn't add wheels, it is light enough that we can slide it along the grass without wheels