the new chicken house

This one can be dignified with the name of "coop" instead of "hutch" like the last one. I raided the front yard for bricks that I used to line the border around the coop. There's also a hardware cloth floor inside under the wood chips because it doesn't come with a floor. The original perch was high up, so we drilled some new holes and lowered it, hoping the hens will eventually figure out where it is.

I bought the coop used from some lovely people with equally lovely chickens and even a banty frizzle house-rooster who wears a diaper and strides around the house all day, commenting on everything he sees. He shares their house with a rabbit,a collie mix, and a teenager (and parents).

My chickens are still getting used to their roomy new quarters, which should be big enough for 3 or 4 chickens. My son and I put it together a few days ago and the chickens still have to be pried off their hutch in the evening and put in the new coop. Yesterday I found one of them trying to get into the hutch, though I had shut the door, and the other hunched miserably on the top, getting dripped on by cold rain. I opened the side of the new coop and put the gold-laced hen on the perch. Once I got the silver-lace in the new coop, she stayed out of reach, so I couldn't place her on the perch.

This morning they were both camped out on the floor. I imagine they'll still need some help finding their way inside this evening.

This is the Chick'N Barn: http://www.mypetchicken.com/Coops_without_Chickens-Chick_N_Barn_With_Run-P316.aspx