# My Rabbit Shed/Chicken Coop



## Myke

I am still working on this, not sure if I will ever be finished, there's always something needing done. I copied this from my post on BackYard Chickens.





The main building is my rabbit shed. I plan to have 2 bucks and 4 does. I am building the door today, doing some painting and if time permits putting wire roof on. I am going to add lattice to the wall of the shed and plant vining berries along that wall and also the welded wire of the chicken run. The add on in the background is my chicken coop. I probably built it to high off the ground, the ramp is going to be tricky. The open window can be closed at night and when it's cold or windy. I didn't put wire over it thinking the chickens can roost up there during the day, should I wire it in? I have 3 nest boxes and 3 roosts set 18 inches apart, should that be fine for 8 hens? I will have my wife take pictures of the chickens, not sure what all breeds I have.




This is the back wall of my rabbit shed, lattice to allow ventilation. I need to do something with the floor, didn't have money for a concrete slab. I'm thinking I'll add pea gravel and dirt and tamp it down.




I put a piece of OSB in a sliding track so I can open or close the shed off as needed.




A picture of 2 of my Californians. I'm thinking about cutting a pop door into the rabbit shed. This will let the chickens get in the shade and give them an extra 96 square feet of room, the run is 8x8 the shed is 8x12. Is it safe to allow the chickens in the rabbit shed. I don't have dropping pans for the rabbit cages yet, but do plan on making some.
If you see anything I need to fix, don't hesitate. Also, if you have any suggestions to improve the set up let me know. 
Myke


----------



## samanthaj

I think it looks awesome!


----------



## ThreeBoysChicks

Looks good to me.  

I have a rabbit that lives in the barn with the chickens, but not sure about Chickens getting the rabbit poop.  Mine can not get to the rabbit poop.


----------



## currycomb

we have dog kennel panels around our rabbit area. the chickens love to get in there and scratch around in the bunny poop. helps dry it out, and reduces the fly population some.


----------



## brentr

That looks like a neat set up.  Please post more pics when all finished!


----------



## Lizzie098

Wow very nice set up. The bunnies like swinging up there?  I have never seen anything like that before, but very nice!


----------



## flemish lops

Wow, It looks great!


----------



## Myke

They don't seem to mind the hanging setup. Mostly they just lay around when I see them, so I really haven't seen how they react if they hop around a lot and get a good swing going. I am going to change the set up though. I'm thinking about building a 2x2 or 2x4 frame system, but haven't decided yet.


----------



## rabbitgeek

Chickens under rabbits are a good combination, especially when the chickens scratch through the rabbit poop. It reduces flies and the chickens clean up any spilled feed.

Try to keep the chickens from roosting on top of the rabbit cages to prevent chicken droppings from falling on the rabbits.

Have a good day!


----------



## dewey

Myke said:
			
		

> They don't seem to mind the hanging setup. Mostly they just lay around when I see them, so I really haven't seen how they react if they hop around a lot and get a good swing going. I am going to change the set up though. I'm thinking about building a 2x2 or 2x4 frame system, but haven't decided yet.


A simple fix to prevent any swinging of hanging cages is a small rod or pvc pipe run through the cages end to end to stabilize them.       

You have an awesome hanging cage set up.  They're level, spaced nicely, and can easily be stabilized.  A frame can allow for another level of cages, but I'd be sure to build the frame on the outside the cages, so the cages hang inside any frame.  Otherwise, the frame will collect waste and be hard to clean.

Great job!


----------



## ChickenPotPie

rabbitgeek said:
			
		

> Try to keep the chickens from roosting on top of the rabbit cages to prevent chicken droppings from falling on the rabbits.


Agreed.  If the chicken droppings contaminate the cage/feed containers/feed you may lose rabbits.

Love your set up.  Rabbits in hanging cages and chickens (I prefer non-flyers like Silkies) are a great combo.  

eta: unless you can keep the pea gravel contained in the isle ways, I'd keep the floor dirt or lay down straw.  It will make for much easier cleaning.


----------



## rockdoveranch

Very impressive!

Chickens are great for clean-ups!  And I agree with everyone who recommended making sure your chickens cannot roost on top of the rabbit cages.


----------



## Myke

The top of the rabbit cages are 7 feet off the ground and there is 5 feet between the rows, I have 6 cages 3 on each side of the shed. Can chickens fly 7 feet up in 5 feet of space? I will have to think about that when I'm deciding how to rearrange the cages.


----------

