Coop 2.0
When talking about our spoiled girls it’s often implied that Chickie Momma is the main reason they are spoiled rotten with monthly subscription boxes and feed store splurges of treats, but the reality is Chickie Daddy is a softy for his girls. All of his girls.
Not shortly after the weather started to cool down did I hear frequent references to Coop 2.0. Soon afternoons on the patio while watching the chickens turning into “what if the coop’s roof slanted back towards the fence?” and “water can collect in the rain barrel.” Those conversations then turned into basic sketches, and then into scaled drawings. It wasn’t long after I showed him coop designs that I thought would work before he was doing the math making sure the city’s limit of hens could be accommodated in the coop and enclosed run because chicken math. Need I say more?
Now frequent sightings of the neighborhood hawk and posts in Facebook groups about increased hawk populations may have solidified the enclosed run but the entire time Chickie Daddy made sure there would be space to garden around the new footprint.
And then it happened.
I spied out the window one Saturday to see Chickie Daddy with a few fluffy feathered helpers placing pavers. A little while later a frame was standing and Nettie the inspector was touring the roosting area after launching herself up. Later that afternoon our savvy STEM girls were foraging while evaluating the plans blown to the grass by the wind.
Patiently he waited for their designer to pick the paint pallet as I polled both sets of Chickie Grandparents, some of their followers, & bought slightly less than 10 sample paints prior to settling on the final combo. When I asked again to upgarde hardware and trim he worked with me looking at options and talking through design changes to accommodate the requests.
As the ground was dug up for a predator proof perimeter his excavation team was in full force, although pausing frequently for a snack or dirt bath. Cold weather and shortening days didn’t stop Chickie Daddy’s determination to give his girls a new home. Not even a sliced thumb compete with stitches slowed him down (when it should have)!
After many weeks of work Coop 2.0 is ready available for move in and to welcome new inhabitants Spring of 2019, when Cohort 2 is ready to hold their own against their big sisters! Until then since we’re hoping to be part of the Tour de Coops 2019 edition, it’s time for their gardener to plan their munch-able landscape to give it a chance to grow in after winter. Naturally this means even if plants they devoured in Forbidden Territory this year for their enjoyment, they’ll turn their beaks away in disgust and look for tastier treats.
If you’re in the neighborhood or need yet another reason to visit Indy, drop us a line- Bar Nico is stocked and the Chicken Room is ready for its next guest.
