What’s in a hen house? Hens, for one. But how can hens live a high-quality life in the hen house, keeping them protected, healthy, and accommodated with easy access to the outdoors?
With top-of-the-line equipment and accommodations that give our ladies their best life in and out of the barn. From expansive ventilation systems, to top of the line feed and water lines, comfortable perches, and of most importance and least exciting, advanced waste management systems. All of these components make up the sum, which ensures our hens well-being, and that their high-quality of life matches the high-quality organic, free-range, and pasture-raised eggs that they produce.
In this past year, we added two new barns. Farmer Eli and Farmer Vernon both built houses for their organic free-range flocks. The process took about 6 months, beginning last winter of 2020, and completed in the spring of 2021.
We chronicled the build with photos to show you the stages of a hen house build and some of what goes into it. Important things we consider when building a new hen house are obviously outdoor space, whether 2 to 15 to 180 square feet of pasture for our ladies depending upon whether they’re free-range or pasture-raised. Trees, shelter structures, naturally occurring grass and vegetation, distance from busy roads, and water run-offs are all other major considerations.
We’re always looking to add new farmers and thus new hen houses, so if you’re interested, now you know a little of what it takes.