where to get cheap ark and run for a broody and some fertilised eggs?

[Amphibimum]

i have a cube and run atm and the ladies are out and about all day.
but id like to get a broody sort of hen and some fertilised eggs and a seperate pen of some kind for her and the babies to live in... assuming i need to keep em seperate for a good while that is. i spose i could use the pen for keeping any boy babies to one side for cooking?

Join freecycle and possibly get a second hand one for free.

Forsham do a small broody coop but it's not big enough to keep grown chicks in. I think their other arks are £250-£300. Or have a look on ideas4pets.com, they're quite cheap and have lots of discounts atm.

I've currently got a cheap ebay coop & run in use with 9 enormous chicks in it. The quality is shit but as it's only for occasional use I thought it was worth the gamble!

I also have a broody hen and 6 tiny chicks in a rabbit hutch within the main pen. I was hoping they could use the main run all day but the other, older hens are not being very nice about sharing. Yours might be more accommodating?

Smiths Sectional do a very nice ark for about £250.

thank you duchess.

is this the forsham broody ark you mean? so they wont be able to stay in it for long enough, is that right? oh bugger.

i have another question; is it ok to mix up bantams and large fowl? my 6 omlet hybrids are lovely enough but i do want some variety now... do i need to stick to large fowl to avoid bullying?

The Forsham Broody coop I was thinking of is much smaller than your link. The ark you've linked to would probably be OK for a broody and a few chicks until they were 6 weeks old - by which time the hen will want to be back in the main pen and the chicks will be half-chicken sized and very independent.

It's a good price too. I might have one...!

i have a suspician the one in the pic is a larger one from the range. hate when they do that.

how does this one look? would chicks be able to get in and out as theres not really a climb in..?

duchess, any chance you can have a look at my last link and say if that coop looks ok for a broody and chicks?

also, the feed merchant has a sort of ark and run, but there is no 'wall' between the indoor bit and the run part. would that be ok?? looks a bit exposed... but he had one with chicks and a hen in it. is he just a shyster?

does anyone know the answers to my questions? i'll take opinions from anyone, honestly

I think that last ark/run you link to is ok. Run is a bit small but if you're going to move them all back to the main chicken pen when chicks are 6 weeks old it should be ok.

A coop without a wall bit isn't ideal, but also not then end of the world. Chances are a broody coop will always be used at this time of year when its quite warm. Main thing is it keeps them dry. The hen will be fine as loads of featehrs to keep her warm. When the chicks are little and fluffy they will go under her at night to keep warm so should be ok. It probably wouldn't be any use in winter for chicks though. I guess that blackbirds, etc manage to raise chicks in hedges and the chicks don't freeze.

thanks for the advice stripey

when you say the last ark i linked to, do you mean this one? just checking as im not sure you mean that or the ark before it (coz i wouldnt call this one an ark, it not being triangular, but what do i know?

i dont reckon the without-wall one looks good enough tbh... id prefer them to be a bit safer/warmer.

Thats the one I meant - I tend to call them all arks if they're small and have a run attached! Guess its a coop though.

oh cool! so the chicks wouldnt have too much trouble getting in and out of that you reckon... thats good.
now to find the website where i stumbled across the same coop for about 40 quid less than that...

They'd be fine. I have a broody coop and the house part is 14" off the ground and they have a really steep ramp to get up. They manage.

oh! i thought they had to be on the ground. id rather they were up a ramp tbh, i worry about rat attacks on the ground... mind ytou a rat would make it up most ramps [talks nonsense]

thanks for advice