basically you build the chicken house and run, get your watering system and feed together and then buy chickens. If mature birds you need a couple sq.ft. per bird in the coop. keep them in the coop two weeks and then you can let them loose and expect them to stay around. close to dark you put food in the coop and close the door when they go in to eat. Do it the same way every time to train them. you can whistle to let them know you are going to feed them and they come running when they hear you after a couple times. Starting with chicks is a little harder.

Hi there, if you check out BackYardChickens.com you should be able to find answers to all your questions. I joined recently because I'm just starting out raising some guineas and chickens, and if you don't see an answer you can post questions and there are lots of people with experience who can help you. Also the people there are so friendly and kind and understanding . I just love the site and visit it everyday. Good luck with your chicks.

These actually look well thought-out and fairly strong, with an eye towards good, sensible construction when it comes to chickens. Depending on how many birds you want to get, they look fine. Some things to keep in mind--they MUST be predator proof. This means everything from rats & mice (carry disease, attracted to chicken feed and can squeeze into any space they can fit their heads into) to raccoons, skunks & possums (smart and can reach through chicken wire with their little hands and tear the backs out of birds) to the neighbor's dogs, coyotes and, depending on where you live, larger predators. NEVER buy anything with chicken wire (poultry netting)--it's designed to keep chickens out of a garden, NOT protect from predators. Both the coops you listed use hardware cloth, which is perfect--it's strong, doesn't rust and get brittle and the small holes don't allow vermin or raccoon hands to pass through. I've heard nothing but horrific stories of mass slaughter from people who wanted to save money and used chicken wire. Their regret was massive. :( For roosts we use 2x2's that we slightly sand on each edge to avoid injury and make it comfortable for the chickens' feet to grip. It works for standard breeds and bantams equally well. Branches of varying size can work too. You should be able to get to your birds no matter where they are in the run/coop (in case of illness/injury), and for cleaning the thing. They WILL poop on everything, and if it's possible for them to hurt themselves on it (wire sticking out, etc.) they'll freakin' find a way. Make plans for where they'll go when you are cleaning the coop or moving it. If it is to be their full-time home, the run should either have a hardware cloth bottom or should be anchored to the ground and hardware cloth buried at least 6 inches down and bent outwards to thwart digging predators--predators LOVE a chicken dinner and will work all night to get one. We constructed our own coop/run/nests, it was cheaper in the long run and we could design it to fit our yard & needs. Enjoy your chickens! :) Velvet ~:>

My chickens and coop don't smell, even if you stick your head in the coop. Any conscientious pet owner takes regular care of their pets' needs, including cleaning up after them. Folks who let dog poop accumulate for long periods around their yards or cat boxes left uncleaned have homes or yards with bad smells. Same with chickens. It is people who totally neglect their chickens or keep more chickens than their space can handle that have "smelly" coops or chickens. Treat them well like your other pets, and they won't be smelly. If you let chickens free range, make sure you set up your yard so they stay off of patios, porches, and furniture. If they poop on that, it can get unsanitary and you'll be doing a lot of hosing down of the surfaces. Baby chicks raised in the house could potentially be smelly if you don't change the bedding a couple of times a day. They also make a lot of dust in the house. I usually clean under the roosts most days in my coop since that is where the majority of the droppings end up, but have let it go as long as a week with no real noticeable smell from the outside of the coop. Typically, I only clean the rest of the coop really thoroughly every few months. If chickens will be confined to a coop for a long cold snowy winter, an owner will need to make it extra big for them to have lots of room while they are shut in in order for them to have healthy conditions. I would recommend maybe doing more research to support your case if your husband isn't on board with chickens. www.backyardchickens.com is a really good online resource to start with where you can get all sorts of chicken questions answered. There is a large community of chicken keepers there, both rural and suburban. Here is a link that might be useful: Backyardchickens.com