There are a lot of people who keep pets at home.
Animals commonly kept as pets are dogs, birds, cats and fish.
Through the years requirements for the maintenance of these pets have increased.
Naturally the prices you have to spend on your pets have also gone up.
The same goes true if you are going to raise chickens in your backyard whether as pets or for their meat and eggs.
You would have to spend not only on feeds but also on housing them.
Creating a chicken coop, the building where you keep your chickens, can be very costly if you just rely on materials that are available in the market or if you choose to buy prefabricated ones.
But if you are creative you can build a chicken coop on a budget.
Here are some tips to guide you to make a chicken coop for your chickens without spending too much.
Start by creating a well thought of chicken coop plan or layout.
It is important to layout your chicken coop well to avoid unnecessary revision later on.
Revisions usually create more expenses than you can imagine.
Your plan must include all the basic requirements for a coop.
Plan out the size of the chicken coop that you will make.
The floor area must be carefully considered.
Normally, 2 to 3 square feet is needed for each chicken.
Measure your coop according to how many you intend to take care of.
It would be to your advantage if you will make it a little bigger so that if there will be additional chickens in the future you will not be forced to build a new house for them.
Any additional space will definitely add up to your expenses but you will still save more compared to building a new one.
After you have come up with the desired size, think of the materials that you will use.
Usually wood is used as frame for your chicken coop.
If you will use new wood it will cost you more.
Instead look for old scrap materials at home.
If you have an old cabinet that you no longer use you can probably get its frame and use it as frame for the coop.
This is in fact more advantageous for you because chances are they already have designs so your coop will look more attractive.
With regards to the walls of the coop you would really have to buy new materials.
Chicken wires are what chicken raisers usually use.
Chicken wires are generally not very expensive so surely this will not be a big burden on your end.
Flooring should also be well planned.
The cheapest flooring for a chicken is the good old dirt.
You just have to pack it down firmly for a better foundation.
However, predators could easily access your chickens if your flooring is dirt.
It is also difficult to clean.
Concrete will definitely give you adequate protection against predators but they are also expensive.
In building chicken coop on a budget that will still give enough protection, a good choice for flooring would be wood.
It is easy to clean and it also gives good foundation.
It may not totally protect your chickens from predators like rodent but it is still better than dirt.
Wood is also prone to rotting.
You can use the walls of your old cabinet for this.
Usually cabinet wood is treated against termites so it will give added protection.