The Chick Inn at White Feather Farm: Coolest Coops Voters’ Choice Winner

Coop Name: The Chick Inn
Owners: Lara Hondros and Chip Gettys
Location: White Feather Farm, Wilmington, North Carolina

Our chicken house was constructed by hand, using a design comparable to the chicken house that stood in the same location on our farm more than 50 years ago. When we began, we weren’t sure how many chickens we planned to raise, so we just wanted to make it big enough to grow into. It was important that we allowed the hens and roosters plenty of space to roost, nest, eat, and scratch on really rainy or cold days when they couldn’t get outside much. Upon completion, our chicken house measured 10 x 12 feet.

Some of the features of our design that we thought qualified it for the “coolest” coop contest were the automatic door, the hand cut and gathered sapling roosting bars and ladder to the nesting space, the PVC feeders and the nesting box door, which allows for egg gathering without going into the coop itself. On the outside, we finished the siding using cut down pallets for cost savings and to give the coop a “vintage” look. A hand-painted sign on the front reads “The Chick Inn est 2017”. Surrounding the coop and accessible during “full farm” free-range time, we have an oyster shell crush station as well as buckets and troughs of chicken-friendly herbs available to cure any ailment.

The chicken yard roughly measures 50 x 20 feet. It includes a rock limb roosting station, several dust baths made out of old window casings from our farmhouse and a swing and hanging treat station. All greenery and flowers in the chicken yard are safe and edible. There is also a mini door that is opened daily to allow the chickens additional time lounging in the shade of our backyard.

We have 14 very happy and super sweet chickens that the whole family enjoys!