New Chicken Tractor

My first chicken tractor was a little PVC contraption that has been serving me well, but does have a few draw backs. Not the least of which is that it is very light (flew over our fence during a strong thunderstorm!) and since it's flat across the top with only a tarp for cover it collects rain water badly during a storm. That said, it was very easy to build (like putting together tinker toys) and it's very light and easy to move around. It's already raised one bunch of pullets and is currently housing a broody hen and her 14 chicks. I won't complain about it too much!

I need more than one tractor and since I had to build another one I figured I'd go for an upgraded model. I decided to build a 'hoop' tractor. This one has a bottom frame of 2x4s. It is 6.5' wide and 10' long. The hoops are 3/4" PVC pipe cut 10' long. Almost everything on this tractor is from scrap I had around the farm. Some of the wood is a little warped, but it still works fine for my purposes.

I built the bottom frame, then braced it with two wooden angle braces (one each on opposite corners) and metal 'L' brackets I had stuffed in a drawer. The wood braces double as perches for the birds. If I'd had more thin lumber I would have braced all 4 corners, but I didn't so I just used what I had!


Once the frame was built, I started adding the PVC hoops. Now, this part is a 2 person job. Or one adult and a handful of kids as the case may be! Pre-drill the holes in the PVC (yea, it's worth pre-drilling... ask me how I know!), attach one end (I used washers with the screws to help distribute the pressure of the screw and to prevent the screw from punching through the PVC) then bend the PVC until if forms an arch. Have a child hang from the middle of the arch to pull it down so you can then attach the other end. My light weight 4 year old wasn't quite heavy enough to pull the PVC hoop down enough for me to easily anchor the loose end. Took one of my big boys to help out! Here's Bella posing with the first hoop I got wrestled into place!

In addition to child labor, a few cats thrown into the mix ensures that your netting is pre-tangled and your box of screws gets knocked over.


Here we are with a few more hoops in place. Odin turned out to be the best help wrestling the loose end down. I honestly don't know how I would have built the tractor if the kids hadn't been around to help me! I ran a PVC ridgepole along the top and that really did seem to help with keeping the hoops stable.

Here's the tractor with the door framed out and the netting going on. I used really light weight plastic netting from Wal-Mart over the whole thing (it was very, very cheap!). Then around the bottom I added 18" tall chicken wire for better predator protection. That makes for about 2' of predator protection around the bottom of the tractor (including the board) and then a net covering to keep the birds from flying out. So far, it's working well. I did a combination of stapling, wiring, and zip ties. I drilled holes through the PVC to run wire or zip ties through to anchor the netting well.


Here's a very, very rare picture of me as I was framing out the door courtesy of Odin who says 'But Mom, you have to be in at least ONE picture'. So... here's your one for the year folks! And yes, safety first!!



Here's my more or less finished tractor. I later tucked the loose tarp up and stapled the bottom down to make it nice and snug. The birds appreciate the shade it provides! You can also see the simple plywood door I cut out and attached with some old hinges I salvaged off a cabinet door. Closes with hook and eyes. You can also see the pull rope I use to tug it around the pasture. I think I'm goign to train the pony to pull it... No, it's not that heavy. It's just that the darn pony is so lazy and could really use a job!




I started moving the Freedom Rangers into the tractor a few at a time. I think I have 20-some odd of them out of the 44 in there now. They've been out in the front pasture in the tractor for a week now and are loving it! I feel bad for the few left in the coop. I guess I should rotate them out... I have 44 Freedom Rangers (meat birds) and 8 random layer breed roosters together. Just not enough room for all of them in my tractor!

Course, if I could get that big bird in the back out of there it might help free up some room!!! He sure eats a lot too!