What every chicken WANTS in their run (But few have!)

[@baddogcustoms7496]

This is why they love being under porches so much so you just might as well make under your porch. They’re dust bathing area. Seriously do yourself the favor. I have 3 what I’d say fancy perfect places for my free ranging chickens to go dust bath & what do they do?? Run 2 acres away to under my neighbors porch “bc I blocked mine off” bc I didn’t want to find eggs under it or have to crawl under it regularly lol. I think my chickens just really love grandma next-door. She was raised with chickens and had not seen chickens in 75 years. & having some different almost strange breeds it blew her mind. It’s great to see a 94 yr old woman throwing things out for my chickens it really makes her day 🥹

[@thefeatherbrain]

I'm jealous you have a porch... Maybe someday I'll join you as a member of the porch club! (And my chickens too!)

[@kayfrick7129]

yep under the deck and porch. So happy for your neighbor. Chickens should be prescribed for anxiety, depression and loneliness. 😄

[@valkyrie1066]

That would be a DELIGHT!

[@rikkeknudsen_]

My best tip would be to put som old garden chairs next to each other in a row. If they are light weight, put a brick on top of each chair. They love resting under there, and also jumping up and down onto the seats and sometimes perching on top. My «chair-arrangement»are a favorite thing in my chicken yard

[@thefeatherbrain]

Great idea - so easy to do too!

[@rikkeknudsen_]

Someones trash is for sure somebody elses treasure👏

[@aciemiega2875]

Dang, when you think you know all about your chickens and you really don’t. After years of research in the Internet on chickens, you were the first to talk about the subject and you are totally correct. I always got mad at my chickens for hanging out underneath my back porch, which is about a foot off the ground, during the middle of the day thinking that they should be out in the yard getting insects, but they only do it of a morning and of an evening. Now I know why. Thank you!

[@seanbragger7035]

Replace the opaque blue covers with clear plastic and paint leaves on half of the inside (easier than it sounds just cut a sponge into the shape of a leaf and print them on).

[@okaygecko]

Perfect

[@debreed670]

I have an actual jungly garden here in Costa Rica for my free-range flock of 14. Such happy chickens!!

[@evabetlyon2693]

For my little flock of 13, I bought a cheap ancient camper..stripped out most of the inside..it's wiring was still good for lights and a fan..the roof was shot, so, my son and grandson helped me slide a huge piece of doubled over pondliner (after we removed all sharp items except for the a/c unit and skylights) it's weather proof and on wheels if I ever want to move it..the chicks have a large area to roam..they like to hang out under the grape arbor and under their house..when they are larger, they will, of coarse, be able to go where they want..I love when they all take off running..I call them my " baby raptors " because that's what the look like 😊

[@thefeatherbrain]

I love to watch them run too!

[@Gr33ny_theOG]

Chickens biggest fear is flying predators over head and having cover gives them that peace of mind

[@christelchristely2816]

Cammouflage netting, they love it.

[@thefeatherbrain]

That's brilliant!

[@winniecash1654]

Where can this be purchased? Great idea!

[@mendynoma4272]

I am babysitting my neighbor’s chickens while she is out of town and therefore doing a lot of research online and this video is very helpful! Branch tepee build is SUPER doable !❤

[@thefeatherbrain]

So glad to hear it! :)

[@jaha5761]

Low cover is spot on. My flock loves to escape the urban backyard and hang out in the boxwoods close to the house. They also make do with another area where the AC drips into a muddy puddle, where they drink and cool their feet in hot weather. Nearby cast iron plants are almost good cover and shade. They also like shade cloth draped over pvc pipe arches (until it flaps in the wind.) Your video is wonderful, I hope it inspires more low cover as a desired element in coop desugn. Many thanks for posting it.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Sounds like you have a wonderful setup for your birds!

[@lindagraves3250]

What are some shrubs chickens like to eat? 🐓

[@beckeytibbets9871]

My girls debug the yard during the day and rest in the shrubbery. They love tucking themselves into our hedges. Love your videos

[@thefeatherbrain]

Hedges are the perfect thing for them! :)

[@MikeSheasheaDtree]

BAM! I have raised chickens for years, but recently, I left a milk crate in our chick nursery to sit on when I came in for a visit. I found our newly hatched chicks loved to hang out under it. Then I took the over to our squash plants, they were to happy being under the big leaves. I also just heard recently the chicken originated in the jungle, a 10 egg/per year 3 to 4 pound bird...

[@Kengsqueen]

oh wow! I didn't even realize I did something right! My girls have a small run, so I made the most of their space by elevating their dust bath on cyber blocks so they can have extra walking space, and they tend to enjoy that area to sit under❤😊

[@thefeatherbrain]

Sounds like perfect low cover - nice job! :)

[@angietorok8389]

I had already caught on to this. Our chickens are constantly under the porch, the cars, the kayak rack....anything they can find. Had not considered making small shelters though. Great idea

[@tinab7791]

I have some extra lattice hanging around, just waiting for a purpose. Found it!

[@thefeatherbrain]

Lattice is the perfect thing!

[@revk8611]

Hey! So do I. Great idea.

[@rattlecat5968]

Fantastic idea! I've got some unused lattice too, and now have a better use for it than just storing it away in the barn for, "who knows!" 🙌

[@AshokasRoots]

I have trifold slotted closet doors! Gonna use those!

[@aprivera103105]

Could you grow something yummy for the chickens on the lattice? 🤔

[@PointOWoodsgal]

I love the mention of the chickens digging around the concrete blocks that support the shed. My coop is an 8'x12' shed. As of now I don't have a run for them, they just wander the yard and stay within 40 feet or so of the coop. They LOVE to settle under it and use the bare ground as a dust bath as well as shade. They do tend to dig out bowl shaped areas right up against the block and I've been concerned about them shifting too. Now I know that I will build them a run and provide them the low cover that they need, and block off the area under the shed. great video!

[@rebekahblanchardtotel7141]

This was so helpful! I prop my chicken feed and water bowls up on an old wooden pallet to reduce the amount of dust and debrit they kick up into it. They have always tried to dig under it. After your video I raised the pallet using 8 retaining wall stackable pieces that I had laying around. The chickens LOVE it and it keeps the food/water bowls even further from the dust/debris. Such a simple way to add 4 square feet to their coop. Thank you!

[@debsone7796]

Thank you for your knowledge on chickens and sharing it with all of us

[@gloriagodfrey3899]

sit your canopies up on blocks or something else so they can look out the sides near the ground. Love your video.

[@lindabirmingham603]

I lined my run with evergreen shrubs spaced 6' apart. When they are large enough, limb them up enough for the chickens to walk under. When you plant the shrubs, give them a 'tree skirt' to keep the chickens from digging up the root zone. I use plastic poultry fencing from TS. Cut a 2 - 3' circle with a slit along one edge, then top with a bit of mulch. Works great! I also bought a pup tent and added dirt and sand. The always have a dry dust bath to hang out in!

[@sarahsloan249]

I have several camper shells sitting on the ground in the chickens pen. They love it. On rainy windy days I can see them inside looking out the windows. They have water and feed inside the camper hell also.

[@peter-k5r4j]

I have a patch of ferns and when they spread I pull up the outer ones and throw them on top of the patch which has formed a kind or thatched roof. The chickens have made a system of tunnels and chambers through it.

[@fatjellydonutglaze2230]

When I trim the trees in front of my property I take the tree branches to the woods in the back of my house I pile them up and my chickens loves staying underneath them especially on hot days

[@shellythie6227]

I use dog kennels with the tray on top. They like to be inside and on top. Bonus, they're already there if someone needs to be separated.

[@SilverKat46]

My chickens love the dog houses.

[@amel2784]

Your content is always so good. Thx!

[@thefeatherbrain]

❤️❤️❤️

[@77lases]

Would love a follow up video covering all the DIY experimental alternatives for low cover, and how the chickens favored one over the other! That would be interesting and fun to see :) Thanks for the great content!!

[@thefeatherbrain]

I'll be sure to do a follow-up!

[@ElizabethKlimas]

I’ve build long time ago & originally as a shelter from the heat triangle from 2 pallets connected by door’s hinges so you can fold them into triangle structure & just set on the ground. Easy, simple, nothing to it just screw the hinges to both pallets & fold them, yet you can put it bars in-between the gaps (wooden sticks) so they can even perch if they want to

[@thefeatherbrain]

That's such a great idea! Thanks for sharing!

[@kjmnature]

When I bought my property it came with used, non-working appliances like 2 ovens, drier, washing machine, etc. I unscrewed the sides of the washing machine leaving me two, metal tee-pee look a like pieces. After a couplehoursofworm hunting Iwent to give the ladies a watermelon treat only to find them under metal tee-pees 😂 as I went to load them up for recycling I was seriously yelled at by the girls. Everyone calmed down with happy purring when I put them back. Seems to be a favorite place for a afternoon power nap. B4 you recycle UR appliances consider taking off the side panels. A metal swing set with metal roofing is now the home of my juvenile chick's, tree branches roped to the inside V for roosting at night was another great, junkyard save.

[@thefeatherbrain]

This really made me laugh - and thanks for sharing! Such great ideas here...

[@retusaforce]

Enjoy all your videos.

[@adventurehippie0514]

Thats a pretty cool little cover. We lifted our hen house off the ground 16inches with 4x4s so there could have a little hiding space and in the corner we put their dust bath opposit side roosting bars.

[@susannetaylor42]

Love your work🤍You obviously want the best for your chickens 🐔 🩶and that’s beautiful 👏🏼

[@kaneyhobelar3618]

I love your videos! Thank you. I have 9 hens in a yard area and I lock them inside of a predator proof coop only at night. I noticed how much they love it when large weeds grew in their yard, so I left them there for them. The most recent group of weeds they love to spend time in turned out to be Chia plants. I am possibly going to fence off an additional pasture for them, and now I am realizing how important these low cover areas are for them, and will explore ideas for it...

[@rustinstardust2094]

Once again I've learned so much from one of your videos. I'm in the process of planning the layout for my new property and this knowledge completely changes things. I'm going to keep the brushy growth near the coop intact instead of clearing it out. Subscribed!

[@CeeDeeTeeVee]

I have a similar pet shade structure but it’s gray…. I also got it on Amazon for about $50. My girls love it! Their main run is 6’ x 21’ and I stretched a 6’ x 8’ tarp across it about 20” high… they absolutely LIVE under that ! It keeps their water shaded also!

[@louisegogel7973]

Have you thought of putting a different cover over your structures? You could also modify the blue cover to include either open strips or clear ones. One could weave grasses into mats to cover the sides… put some ropes to give the warp and you make the weft with whatever is handy. Also, consider planting comfrey around the perimeter of your coop, but fence it in on both sides so the plants can thrive while the chickens peck whatever leaves they can reach… helps them have stronger egg shells.

[@thefeatherbrain]

These are all great ideas - thank you!

[@kayfrick7129]

I have comfrey protected by chicken wire next to all my runs.

[@nccrchurchunusual]

Where do I find comfrey? I have chkd my local nurseries.

[@louisegogel7973]

@@nccrchurchunusual where do you live? I have tons. Join a plant group and ask… or go on free cycle, or community yard sales etc and put a photo of comfrey out with a request to dig up some roots.

[@tabp8448]

​​​Permapasture Farm YT channel has some for sale. I bought (i think it was)8 cuttings and they sent 12, two years ago. This year i dug them up and divided the roots, so now i have over 20 comfrey plants growing around my run. It's one of the first green things growing in the spring, and my ladies love eating it. @@nccrchurchunusual

[@winniecash1654]

I love your videos. You have such good ideas! Ty ❤

[@katiedotson704]

Portable chicken tunnels would be great to give them room to roam, safety from overhead predators, and a feeling of security.

[@TammieBuckeye]

Great information. I love the way you deliver your knowledge. I subbed right away

[@susanbellt3029]

Love your videos, especially love the etiquette one well done I was thinking if you just hung some strips of cloth from your blue tees like a 1970s curtain. They might be happier.

[@mrspogadaeus]

How about a "leaning roof" on hinges that are attached to the inside of the coop? It can be attached in two ways: hinges that swing both ways, and eyehooks attached to the roof and chains long enough attached to the opposite side so the little cover leans down at an angle and can be lifted and temporarily kept "up" to clean underneath by a 3rd chain, shorter than the others with a Carabiner clip. The pitch of the cover should be steep enough that they won't roost there or poop on top. Then hang a "camouflage cover" on the colored like camo but it's a breathable sheet with slices precut out and you can see through it. Or you can make it, just take an old sheet or sturdy rubber rain Pancho, put some slices in it like the fringe on a fringed stage jacket, and put it over a sawhorse, using temporary measures to secure it to the sawhorse. That way you can take it off and spray it clean. 🤷🏼‍♀️

[@thefeatherbrain]

I like how you think. :)

[@kayfrick7129]

LOVE this!!! I too have experimented with all kinds of low cover and coop designs and have yet to come up with anything I'm 100% happy with. I'm fortunate to be able to free-range most of the time and they have plenty of natural low ground cover then. The pallet on 5 gallon buckets works great and I now make runs with chunnels with a tarp over the middle part and they absolutely love that! the chunnel goes from the coop area to a corral area where they can flap their wings freely. I've always kept food and nest near the coop, but I'm experimenting with moving food and nest to the corral away from the coop.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Love these ideas! So nice you can free range. We have so many predators I only free range mine with supervision, but we're working on building a large fenced area with netting on top - I'm excited to plant a little jungle in that area for them. Thanks for sharing your setup and experiments!

[@kayfrick7129]

@@thefeatherbrain I've actually only recently created a FB forum called Do No Harm to brainstorm humane ways of coping with predators. I have eagles, hawks, owls, coyotes, racoons, skunks and neighbors' dogs to deal with. So far only racoons have killed any and that was when they refused to go in coop and roosted too high for me to put them in the coop. During the day, my ten roosters do and AMAZING job keeping 23 hens safe. And they usually get all the hens safely in their coops at night well before most nocturnal predators are looking for breakfast.

[@thefeatherbrain]

@@kayfrick7129 Glad to hear you've had such great success! At my previous home, I free ranged my chickens for years. Then one day a neighbor who lives several miles away - their dogs got loose, yellow labs. Within no time they'd killed 7 of my chickens, even with 4 roosters on guard. Those dogs killed chickens (including several roosters) from 2 other neighbors I know of that same day. It was such a horrible experience and my surviving chickens were traumatized and didn't leave the coop for a week, not to mention many had lost close friends. I'm the type of person who bawls over every lost hen, so I decided then I would never free range again. Here, we're going to build them a large protected yard with a jungle food forest, and then I figure in later years I'll do less protected but still fenced paddocks off of the larger yard that they can go in with supervision (either me or my dog.) I plan to plant different food forest stuff in these paddocks so the chickens can go into different paddocks at different times of the year and always have new and fresh things to eat, while at the same time, plants can recover/regrow (or new plants can get established) in the paddocks when need be without chicken interference.

[@kayfrick7129]

@@thefeatherbrain that's my dream setup also! So sorry about the dog attacks. I've had at least 6 over the years, but thankfully never lost a chicken. That was early on, but all my neighbors apologized sincerely and felt horrible and kept their dogs under control after it. I really am blessed to have great neighbors but I know most people don't. One time it was 3 dogs plucking my alpha and one was a great Dane!!! AMAZINGLY after putting him in a dark room to recover from shock for a few hours, I did a health check and he had zero wounds just missing a lot of feathers. The next day he was walking around like nothing happened. I have had chickens refuse to go in their coops for unknown reasons and roost too high for me to get them and a racoon got them. I sometimes think they know they are visiting at night and if one has been suffering in pain without my notice, it may have been there way of seeking relief. I only recently discovered Just The Fowl Facts and am so happy to FINALLY have reliable health advice for my chickens!!! And I have a vet just one hour a way that did an awesome job for five year old Angelica who was bitten just last week when I didn't notice she hadn't gone in her coop Wednesday night. Love your channel and looking forward to learning more from it! 🐓🐓🐓

[@angelareynolds1111]

I bought a canopy when I saw your post an about a month ago . lol however I’m thinking about getting another one! I will definitely purchase by using your link!! I absolutely adore you!! Hope you’re doing well!! Love your chicken friend from Vail,AZ!

[@PHYTOPLANKTON1987]

Very cool to have some new chicken keeping information

[@rattlecat5968]

I've been watching every YT video on chicken coops and outdoor runs for months, just soaking up the info so I can build a coop for the 6 chicks I brought home last week. But, your video had a lot of information that none of the other creators even mentioned! *THANKS so much, for SHARING!*

[@thefeatherbrain]

Thank you! Good luck with your build! :)

[@MichelleCombs-o1h]

I have been watching a lot of your videos lately, as I’m in a researching deep.hole! LOL.(II have 2-week old chicks). 😁. Your content is excellent, and I always learn so much from you. Thank you!

[@thefeatherbrain]

I love them at that age!

[@Sea-cucumber1151]

Try ordering those fake boxwood screens, people put on their walls for greenery or for weddings, maybe do the sides in the fake boxwood screens. They are plastic so could be washed off or use a blower to clean. So are more see through than others. And honestly they are not expensive unless doing a whole wall. Walmart and Amazon both have them. They would love it cause they would be able to see through jt.

[@BeautifulLorah]

Oh that’s explain a lot of my chicken behaviors, thank you ❤ love your vids

[@revk8611]

I just found your videos. They are amazing.

[@thefeatherbrain]

❤️❤️❤️

[@SandraHertel-u3b]

We have a run that the coop is above part of it. About 3 ft high maybe. They just love to hang out there especially in the sunshine.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Raised coops are so great for them!

[@valkyrie1066]

I could see that. They can still see predators from there, even if they are unreachable. I can see why those would be useful. I have to indoor/outdoor chickens. They go to the door to indicate they want to go out, like the dog does. when they want back in, they perch on a windowsill and STARE until I come out to carry them in. They do seem to spend more time outdoors in the morning and again in the afternoon, the middle of the day they nap on blanket covered pillows. Being a housechicken is a hard life. Any alarm calls while they are out and the german shepherd goes to assist. Lots of vultures few hawks here. They may appreciate one of those in the yard in the summer, here they can forage in shade. Pretty cool! we raised ours in nylon/net "pet play yards." Very handy, and not expensive. Easy to move, easy to hose off. we use a multitude of baby bankets and fleece throw as bedding, rather than pine shavings. (they seem to hate the absorbant pet pads, and only move them to the side immediately.) Thank you, I love new ideas! Treat balls, snuffle mats, hanging vegetables. Make them work for it!

[@kayreynolds3801]

I have an old trampolene with a waterproof cover surrounded by metal mesh fencing so it's secure and dry. It's just off their main outdoor run. They spend hours under there preening and dustbathing facilitated by dry ground even in our wet environment in the UK

[@traryvery8851]

Just found you and love your videos. Great that you are educating folks in chicken behaviour and in providing environments that are better for them. We have clumping bamboo along a fence which our chooks love to be in, sort of vertical blinds 😂 Our chooks also love chilling out under a low rain shelter in their yard which doubles as a platform for one of their weather/rat proof feeders (easy to fill).

[@angelareynolds1111]

She is the best of the best!!!! I’ve learned so much!! ❤

[@thefeatherbrain]

I love the idea of clumping bamboo - bamboo is one of the most common food items for wild chickens. Do they eat any of yours? I was thinking of planting some in a raised bed in my run for them...

[@thefeatherbrain]

You are the sweetest - thanks for your support!

[@janw491]

My 5 girls can go under the coop so I wrap that for the winter to keep the wind out. They spend most of the day, when not out in the garden, under there summer and winter, digging dustbath holes and just chilling out.

[@patty9265]

I have places like that all over my outside run areas for shade spots and for places to run from flying predators. And your wright they do most of there roaming around early and later evening.

[@OMalMalamutes]

We have a 2nd chicken yard attached to the main yard. We've been calling it the jungle because the foliage is so thick. Then I found your video! They have even learned the word "jungle". It's a little less dense now, but still has lots of baby trees and some plants they won't eat. Their favorite place to hang out.

[@lynnbarber3476]

I had bought the same low cover canopy and mine have been enjoying it for a while lol!

[@barrysvendsen9161]

What about shade-tolerant potted plants as low cover or scissor-cut many spaces all over the blue canvas like military camouflage & once it wears out replace with military camouflage.

[@emp2687bb]

you can build similar structures out of pvc pipes and stretch old bed sheets over them.

[@teresamarie3676]

No need to put hardware wire under the entire run. Put it instead about a foot or so wide all around the exterior perimeter and bury it. Sort of like a skirt flaring out. Predators will always try to dig right around the exterior of the run and coop, and once they find wire under the ground they give up. This has worked for me for many years. I'm enjoying your videos, thanks for the great content!

[@kaedrian]

Oooh, I have an old kids' soccer goalie outside that nobody is using anymore. Add some shade cloth to it, and that might work.

[@wayne2732]

I wish I could figure out how to upload a photo or two. I've used many of your methods with so much success. This includes imprinting myself on them, low over head cover, planting shade producing plants and how to improve their overall living conditions. Hilde, one of girls, has a desire to sit on my shoulder and clean my head. I had so much fun teaching them how to go to bed.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Thanks so much for sharing this! Sounds like you are giving your flock a wonderful life and Hilde is hilarious! You can always email photos to [e-mail]. I'd love to see them! :)

[@wayne2732]

@@thefeatherbrain i will.

[@corinnemurphy]

Thank you! I never knew but it makes perfect sense why they go under my tailed during mid day. I will definitely be ordering two of those. Thank you for sharing.

[@skyethewylder]

Another great video! We have three large dying maples that will be cut down next few weeks. I will use pieces of the branches to create structures for them.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Sounds perfect!

[@AmyHaddy-gn8ls]

My chickens are being raised in a food forest/jungle and I can confirm they love to hang out all day under the bananas and lemongrass.

[@thefeatherbrain]

How nice for them! That's my goal too - to raise them in a food forest.

[@MyScubadoo]

Freebie idea! I have several lean-to’s made out of 2 pallets in my orchard. They love them. They are pretty easy to move too.

[@angelawilliams5153]

I had never thought about this, but I have an RV and a food trailer and my chickens love to hang out underneath both of them…. This makes a lot of sense

[@Afroyogacollective]

Ahhhh! Time to rebuild the teepee. I already have a 12" pallet cover in their free range area they love. I took out the teepee when the baby chicks were fully integrated and didn't need to hide from "peck attacks" from the older girls. I just don't want to invite mice by giving more cover🤧. Already trying to get rid of those pests! . My coop is already elevated however

[@richardmatthys7133]

Have a raised coop about 24" off the ground. They hang out underneath during bad weather.

[@thefeatherbrain]

I love raised coops

[@karenstern2804]

Bittersweet bush; grows very quickly and provides excellent cover!

[@layliedwards961]

Great video. You could cut a few nice round holes in the sides of your canopy

[@joyseyboldt7334]

I use wood lattice that had gotten bent into a horseshoe shape. They love it! They spend most of their day under it.

[@michaeldavis3819]

I was just looking on Amazon. You can get rolls of camouflage netting for less than twenty dollars. That would be ideal: it looks natural, is long lasting, doesn't trap air like plastic sheets, gives the Venetian blind effect like any shrub, and can easily be cleaned with a hose. Assemble a PVC frame for cheap, then attach the netting with zip ties. Problem solved. 😊

[@mariemin946]

Great Info ! Thanks , I thought they were always wanting fields and forage like on homesteads.

[@Fizzbann]

We use a dog house. I put hay in it, but they kick it out onto what I call their compost pile. We intend to plant natural cover that is chicken safe once I build a bigger run. We found they enjoy elephant ear plants for cover. When I redo their run I intend to dig down to place hardware cloth beneath the root level of any shrubs we plant so the run stays completely wired off from preditors. I'll be making planters for stuff like chicken weed to grow so they can peck at it, but can't dig it up with a low hardware cloth cover. Hopefully I'll have room to make a willow tree teepee structure that will grow also.

[@aaronhopkins6697]

Thanks Feathers, i just found your chanel and subbed. I'm new to chickens, and this is helping me with many great thoughts and ideas. Green love from Australia 💚🌲🐓🐔🌴🌏🙏

[@Afroyogacollective]

Ahhhh! Time to rebuild the teepee. I already have a 12" pallet cover in their free range area they love. I took out the teepee when the baby chicks were fully integrated and didn't need to hide from "peck attacks" from the older girls. I just don't want to invite mice 🤧. Already trying to get rid of them.

[@thenextpoetician6328]

On the list but not during haying season is finishing the new coop and integrated greenhouse. The current setup on the farm I lend a hand on is at its tail end. I've been keen for a few years to get this done, and some of your practices are musts for the flock. They deserve it. Thanks.

[@richardweyland116]

Thanks for the help! Thanks for using nice music.

[@BigsexyChickenthighs]

I have so many covered spots . I love ruse structure 😊

[@michaeldeenihan1911]

Thank you!!’ Great information as always!!!!

[@PaulineCarpenter-o5c]

My spoiled chickens do have a big, edge of forest run. They love to hide under the bushes and dig little pots in the sand. They have two small decks that are over a swamp and boy do they left to go in the mud and dig for worms. They have a sand bottom in their Coop so their feet stay clean. We do have netting over the area they loiter in to protect from hawks. I have witnessed all the things you are describing and you are right!

[@MaryMyhaver]

I have an outdoor dog bed, four metal legs and a top cover, its perfect! Thank you

[@supramby]

A couple of hay bales and a pallet

[@thefeatherbrain]

Great idea!

[@PracticingLiberty]

I bought two of these after seeing them in a previous video. They are well-built. They even come with screw-in ground stakes and everything to keep them tethered in the wind. Still have not put them up... Also, my Mohawk Rhode Island Reds ,which seem pretty jungley, spend a lot of time under low cover - Makeshift lean-to of pressed board against covered fence and sometimes under leftover piles of construction materials next to the aviary. They even go inside a loosely rolled piece of surplus hardware cloth. The other chickens are doing it too. Now I know why. Thank you!

[@thefeatherbrain]

Now that I think about it, at my old house, they spent a lot of time under my truck whenever it was parked near enough to the coop - they're pretty good at finding cover everywhere!

[@nancytaylor7525]

I planted zinnias this spring and my girls hang out there all day long. I thought they would tear it up. They have not. But, now that it is fall I need to come up with a fall/winter plan.

[@thomasgamache1354]

You have answered many questions about something I've seen the girls do

[@kaiyakershaw1028]

I think I did this accidentally! I was trying to block the really cold winter wind by placing some 4-in strips of cardboard vertically between the layers of regular chicken wire and hardware cloth that make up the bottom 2 1/2-3 feet of my run. I spaced them out so they could still see out a little. They seemed to like it, but of course it didn’t last too long with the rain warping and deteriorating the cardboard. And the chickens picking at the paper layers of the cardboard as it broke down. I wonder if I could find some firm plastic sheets that I could repurpose.

[@JennfamousartBlogspot]

Just an idea I had… cut the fabric on the canopy to create the blinds effect. It seems simple enough, and you would not even need to take it apart if you have liquid stitch (a fabric glue) and a razor blade/ box cutter. I would do a video of it if I had my homestead (current in dreaming stage while in the concrete jungle 😢)

[@thefeatherbrain]

Great idea! ...And I'm sure you'll get there! I think must of us started our dreaming in the concrete jungle... :)

[@danirasys]

I was just thinking about the camouflage nets that the military uses. Looks like foliage from the outside, totally see-through-able. Maybe available at a sports shop in the hunting section?

[@pammaisano239]

Thanks for sharing, getting ready to homestead will use this advice Where do you live it looks beautiful

[@thefeatherbrain]

Thanks for commenting! I live in Horseshoe Bend, Idaho. :)

[@ECole-le7we]

Your videos are always the best.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Thank you! 💕

[@rebeccaharmony1438]

As I was watching this very good video and appreciating the info, I thought about shade cloth and pvc? Lightweight. One structure my chickens have access to is a compost tunnel made from a cattle panel and old greenhouse cover. They spend a lot of time in there, especially in winter to keep warm and do some scratching entertainment.

[@thefeatherbrain]

Great idea for a lightweight structure! I hope to one of these winters build a little greenhouse type structure for my chickies too. :)

[@SunnysCitySlickinChickens]

Best ideas every. Thank you.

[@librarymouse567]

Cute little dinosaurs ❤

[@AndyDelosSantos]

Wow this was a great video. 🙌🏽 so much to think about.

[@aliciahanson54]

Oakleaf hydrangea is commonly available and grows into a huge umbrella of shade. My girls spend their day under it.

[@SamuelCiuriuc]

Thank you for the great information

[@cluckieschickens]

This is true. Mine spend most of the day under the henhouse which is about 18 inches off the ground.

[@sharonbolton8676]

I use fishing umbrellas

[@kamudankemter]

Thanks