Cube Mark One Run

[knackered]

Morning,

 

I am new to this forum and to chicken keeping - picked up 4 hybrid girls last saturday. We have built a WIR and currently have a wooden coop. I really want an Eglu classic or a Go but will they really fit 4 hybrids in them? Admittedly my girls all huddle together in their wooden coop (in the nesting box) and take up no space at all. From what i've read it's best to give them more space rather than less and i'm worried that if i change from their massive wooden coop they might be unhappy as they do seem to hang out in it during the day.

 

There is no way i can afford a cube, it is amazing than hubby has said yes to the Eglu as there is nothing wrong with the wooden coop and I have spent £450 so far on the WIR and extras. Also i don't want more than 4 as there really is no more room in the run for more than that (6 x12 foot) so a cube would just be too big. Although saying that i've been reading about Bantums..... So maybe re-mortgage the house and turn the whole garden into a massive chicken run and buy 2 cubes

 

Anyway thank you for reading - i've been lurking on this forum for a few weeks now and have picked up so much information (all your beautiful WIR gave me inspiration). I'm looking forward to sharing my chicken journey with you all.

[Tutti Frutti]

Welcome to the forum! Yes, I have 7 hybrids - four go in one Eglu Classic and three in the other and they are ALL fine If anything, the three rattle around a bit! Four is good for the winter months too as they snuggle up and keep warm.

 

Photos please? We all love drooling over each others' photos

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Welcome . I have 5 in an eglu - admittedly they only lay in there (and only 2 lay regularly ) but they have all slept and laid in it quite happily . If you have a WIR you may find they prefer to sleep al fresco anyway .

[knackered]

I have a few photos on facebook but not sure if my settings will allow people to see them - lets see

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=181148&id=694271861&l=24955c447f

 

They already try and roost ontop of the wooden coop at night, i've been putting them in the coop because hubby feels they are safer in there but i think 'they're birds - let them roost where they want, more natural for them to be outside'. So i'll be buying an eglu for them just to lay in then I think our WIR is fairly fox proof but once they have destroyed all the grass inside i'm going to put down slabs to make sure.

 

They are just so realaxing to watch, yesterday we just sat outside and watched them peck around and Mable had her first dust bath. The baby keeps on nearly getting her fingers pecked when she trys to stand hanging onto the wire. But seriously they poo sooooo much i need hubby to make me some more compost bins this weekend. Luckily we have an allotment and always spend so much money on compost - the compost alone could pay for the Eglu.

 

If you could tell me what type of hybrids i have from the photos that would be great - i know the white one and the brown one are sisters but thats about it.

[Tutti Frutti]

Lovely set-up! I love the sleepers around the bottom

 

I *think* your girls are... a Sussex Star (Light Sussex hybrid), Columbian Blacktail (the breed Waitrose has for their free range eggs!), Speckledy and Black Star/Rhode Rock* (like a Black Rock but they're only bred at the Muirfield Hatchery - so the same mix of Rhode Island Red/Barred Plymouth Rock but from a different hatchery).

 

*Or if her legs are really dark/black she could be a Suffolk Noir! Proof will be in the egg - beige = Black Star, dark chocolate brown = Suffolk Noir

[rachael_farnsworth]

I've got two in a classic and they do rattle around a bit like peas on a drum...

[knackered]

Now i just need to decide - classic or go........... choice is not a good thing

[sezra]

I have just had to make the same decision! My OH is out in the garden right now making our run and we don't have our chickens yet but are hoping by the end of the weekend we will officially be chicken owners!

I went for the Go in the end, as we also have a big run I decided it didnt matter that it didn't have an egg hatch and sadly although the Classic is more funky I went for the cheaper option. I was told that the Go is made in China and the Classic in Britain. I always try to buy British but we have spent a fortune already in materials so I decided to be a miser!

 

Your WIR looks fantastic!

[knackered]

I really can't decide...... more colours for the classic and I do like purple, although the red go is pretty cool. I don't like the classic having the nesting box higher than the roosting bars but then the go has the double skin with a gap thing and made in china but i like the way the whole back comes off.....

 

I have passed on the WIR compliments to my husband - he is very proud of himself and now thinks he is a DIY genius. I want him to make me a bench and a shelter so i can chicken watch in the rain. I would quite like slabs around the outside and a storage shed too

[sezra]

Now i just need to decide - classic or go........... choice is not a good thing

 

Hi I just wondered what you decided in the end. We picked out Go up at the weekend, the chickens seem happy enough and it was quite easy to put together. I havent had to do the first clean out yet though so cant comment on that! Does the gap between the two layers help insulate/keep it cool. I hadnt realised there was much of a design difference ither than the shape. Hope I have made the right choice!