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rookie
New Member

Reged: 03/22/04
Posts: 24
Loc: Northern Minnesota
Horses and chickens co-existing?
      03/22/04 12:20 AM
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We need some expert opinions! We have lived in the country for 4 years. We have 60 acres in Northern Minnesota. So far, our only livestock is chickens - 3 laying hens and 5 banties. This spring we are going to build a barn so that we can get a couple of horses. Here's the question: Can the chickens live in the barn? We would wall of their own section, and give them their own door to the outside. Is there any downside here? We are trying to save money on building both a barn and a new chicken coop (the coop we have is too small and impractical). This is my first posting, so I'm pretty excited. Thanks for the help.

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egon
Veteran Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 3031
Loc: Nova Scotia,Canada
Re: Horses and chickens co-existing? new [re: rookie]
      03/22/04 04:55 AM
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They should coexist quite happily. Course you may find the odd chicken roosting on a horses back unless a cat got there first.

Egon

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Slyder
Member

Reged: 01/11/04
Posts: 34
Loc: Jamestown, Ohio
Re: Horses and chickens co-existing? new [re: rookie]
      03/22/04 06:42 AM
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I have four free-range chickens and two horses that live in the same barn. There are only two problems...1. as Egon said, the chickens roost on the horses at night. The racoons leave them alone that way. Its not really a problem but...you will find piles of chicken poop on your horses' back! 2. I had one hen that loved to roost above the horses' water bucket. The horse then doesn't have fresh water. So, I put up a barrier...now she's with the others...pooping on his back.

The slower you go, the faster you get there!

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JoeR
Silver Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 207
Loc: St.Cloud, FL
Re: Horses and chickens co-existing? new [re: Slyder]
      03/22/04 09:04 AM
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Our chickens tried to roost in the rafters and they pooped all night onto the horses. I built a seperate coop next to the barn that is on skids. I can move the coop around and the poop never builds up underneath. The chickens are near the horses all day long inside the barn, and clean up any dropped feed, etc... Although, I didn't like the chickens pooping all night into their water, buckets, and everything else. You may want to build a coop or special roost inside the barn which would control where the poop builds up. Overall, I do not have problems with predators at night since the horses are close to the chicken coop. The sound of the horses keep many predators away.

Joe

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