henmobile

[bookwormom]

husband just mowed the lower pasture and mentioned that bugs and grasshoppers are abundant, actually chickenfeed on the hoof. I really would like to put a henmobile out there and move it every so often. I subscribe to a magazine called "Farming" that is published by some Amish family (David and Elsie Klein) and the last issue showed a hen mobile, including a scarecrow to keep predators away. The chickens also scratch up the cow patties and eat the fly larva congregating there, making a dent in the fly population. the only drawback, I would have to walk a ways to let them out and lock them up, and carrying water to the back of the pasture on the hill could become strenous. another plus, besides hopefully saving a lot on chickenfeed, in winter I could park it smack in the middle of the garden, let them have a go at the critters hiding under the mulch.

[Dawgus]

Though we just started a month ago with our very first 3 hens, I took a design from an ad I saw and made my own version of it. The thing was called an "egg cart'n", but was way too big for just 3 hens on our piddle one acre. I just reworked a few things, and cut it in half. It's on wheels thanks to a long dead lawn tractor, so I can move it every day. So far, it's working great.
This is the one I took the design from : http://www.eggcartn.com/photos.htm very cool but I sure wouldn't pay $979 + shipping for it!

[bookwormom]

hey, good for you. three chickens may be all you need.
The henmobile is a bit larger, like a chickenhouse on wheels. we have an old trailer that does not get used and I would like to put a henhouse on it, something that would hold around 20 chickens. I have a bunch of palettes that I would like to utilize. We'll see how it goes.
:)

[mom]

You could always be like we are. JUMPERS. We keep the chicken's wings clipped and still we have 2 hens that jump to the top of the fence and over. The dogs totally ignore them and the hens totally ignore the dogs. We have given up trying to keep those 2 girls in the chicken yard. I mean they have 1/4 of an acre as a chicken yard. Luckily we found their nesting spots. We decided not to sweat the small stuff although those girls have taken a liking to my tomatoes and are getting more than their share. Alas, such is life.