OK, so you’ve been toying with the idea of keeping chickens, but you’re unsure whether you’ll want to commit long-term - and reluctant to invest too much in a swanky chicken coop. Chicken arks can be great for beginners because they are cheap, are just right a small flock of three or four hens and you can be flexible in where you position your chicken coop.

There are some handsome tall designs of chicken ark with the roosting space above the run. But they are hard to build and very expensive to buy.

Build a Chicken Ark Yourself

We used a downloadable e-book (Building a Chicken Coop) that has detailed plans for a simple chicken ark as well as all the information you need to get sarted in keeping chickens. When you get hooked (and you will!), there are also plans for two larger fixed Chicken Coops - so your initial investment will more than pay off. The plans are well designed and thought out and the instructions are easy to follow.

As you move Chicken Arks to new patched of ground every day, your hens will effectively be free-range, but they will be protected from preadtors at all times.  Of course you can let them out while you are around to supervise - if you let them out in afternoon they will be waiting for you by the ark at dusk, or late afternoon, so you can put your chickens back easily for the night.  Tha ark has a sliding door between the roosting and nesting area and the run, so they can be shut in at night for addtional warmth and protection.

Chickens and Severe Weather

Chickens are pretty adaptable to different climates. They can tolerate cold, but do like protection from damp and if you live somewhere hot, they will appreciate some shade. That’s another adavantage of a chicken ark - you can move it so they get the sun, or more shade if it is too hot.  If it’s tricky to find a shady spot, a simple cover to shade some of the run will give them shelter from the worst of the jeat.  it’s also worth going for a breed that doen’t mind the heat. If your problem is cold winters you can insulate the roosting part of a chicken ark - but generally they will huddle up more closely when it is cold.

Chicken Feed

Cickens feed happily on kitchen scraps, but do need grit or small stones to digest their food. Either you can feed them a supplement or you can use the natural grit and small stones in the ground, that they will scratch up when they are foraging in the chicken ark. This is another advantage of the vhivken ark design - moving it around will naturally provide the chickens with grit.

If you put the ark on dry, dusty ground they will scoop a shallow hollow, which they will lie down in and fluff up their feathers, then they’ll flap away throwing dust over themeselves.  Dust baths help to keep mites at bay and the chickens do seem to enjoy them. You’ll enjoy watching too!

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