Apartment Therapy, one of my favorite web sites and a great chronicler of daily design,
did an interview and profile of me and Handcrafted Coops in their Meet The Maker series.
If you’d like to know more about me, my design background and the origins of the
Portable Chicken Coop you can head over there now and take a look.

Drew Waters of Handcrafted Coops – Meet the Maker

Here’s one of the Q & A’s…

What’s your advice for a designer/maker just starting out?
I feel like I still have so much to learn, but I would say find a physical space where you can spend some time alone and push forward your ideas.
Carry a notebook to write down and sketch your inspirations – they come at inopportune moments. Design is only one small piece of the puzzle.
Without the right marketing ideas, business model, distribution model, supply chain and business system, a product’s life span will be short-lived.
You need to get these other pieces sorted for your designs to work commercially. If you are not accomplished with web design and marketing,
find people who are and ask them to help you. A lot of the work lies in communicating the essence and functionality of your product.

UrbanChickens.net – This blog about urban chicken farming covers a whole range of topics, from choosing your chicks to changing your local ordinances.

DigginFood.com – So you’re growing your own food — now what do you do with it? This site is dedicated to answering that question, with growing guides, recipes, and stories about growing and enjoying real food. There’s also plenty of good information specifically about raising chickens.

BackyardChickens.com – Nice, comprehensive site on raising chickens in the city, suburbs, and country, including an image gallery for coop ideas.

BackyardPoultry.com – A comprehensive site with a very active forum, directory and links dealing with keeping chickens in Australia and New Zealand.

MichaelPollan.com – Pollan is one of the most articulate writers on the subject of food and food quality today. His classic The Omnivore’s Dilemma is a must-must-must read, especially if you’re going to be raising and enjoying your own farmstead eggs. All of his books and writings are linked from his site.

Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension – a great resource for articles on raising chickens, building coops, composting and troubleshooting issues with your hens

Community Websites
Growing Gardens (Portland, OR) – This organization supports low-income households with gardening resources, offers afterschool garden clubs, sponsors workshops and work parties, and teaches gardeners all about growing, preparing, and preserving healthful food. The link takes you to the chicken resources area of their site.

UrbanChickens.org (Albuquerque, NM) – Educational and networking site run by city farmers KT LaBadie and Mark Scully in Albuquerque.

SeattleTilth.org (Seattle, WA) – This nationally recognized non-profit organization works to cultivate a sustainable community in Seattle, one garden (and chicken coop) at a time. The link takes you to a great collection of local chicken info.

COOP: Chicken Owners Outside (And In) Philadephia – This group is a friendly cooperative of Philadelphia-area chicken owners. Check out their nice feed of chicken-keeping-related news. And if you’re keeping chickens near Philly, get in touch with them.

Pioneer Valley Backyard Chicken Association (Western Massachusetts) – This community group features chicken workshops and consultations, an annual coop tour, a chicken-sitter list, and more to help chicken keepers in the area.

JustFood.org (New York, NY) – This organization has been working since 1994 to build a stronger regional food system in the New York City area. Their City Chickens resources page tells you more about them and offers links to everything you need to get started.

Urban Chicken Advocates of Nashville (TN) – UCAN successfully advocated to legalize backyard chicken keeping in Nashville. Now they lead educational programs to help people get started.

Poultry Associations
American Poultry Association
http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/

American Bantam Association
http://www.bantamclub.com

Chicken Selection and Breed Information
Oklahoma State University
http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/poultry/

Poultry Pages UK
http://www.poultrypages.com/chicken-breeds.html

Poultry Keeper
http://poultrykeeper.com/chicken-breeds

Henderson’s Handy-Dandy Chicken Chart – An alphabetical list of dozens of chicken breeds, comparing size, egg color, personality, and special requirements.

Chicken Picker App (for iPhone, IPad and iPod Touch)
http://www.pickinchickenapp.com/

Hatcheries / Mail Order Chickens
When ordering chicks online, it is best to find a reputable hatchery as close to home as possible so that your chicks’ travel time is diminished. Do a Google search for: Hatchery, your hometown or State. Here are some of the more recognized hatcheries:

Mt Healthy Hatchery (OH)
http://www.mthealthy.com/page/1395107

Meyer Hatchery  (OH)
http://www.meyerhatchery.com/

Murray McMurray Hatchery (IA)
www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/

My Pet Chicken (CT)
http://www.mypetchicken.com/

Ideal Poultry (TX)
http://www.ideal-poultry.com

Dunlap Hatchery (ID)
https://www.dunlaphatchery.net/

Directory of Hatcheries and Poultry Breeders (all US states)
http://www.motherearthnews.com/directories/Hatchery-Directory.aspx?directory=116150

Chicken Feed and Supplies
MyPetChicken.com – Offers everything you need to get started — baby chicks, accessories, books, coop plans, gifts, etc. They also have a very informative section on chicken care.

Countryside Organics — Certified Organic, Soy-Free Starter, Grower, Scratch and Broiler Feeds. Complete Nutrition, Organic Goodness, Good Stuff!

Modesto Milling — All organic poultry formulas are created using organic and OMRI certified ingredients.

Purina Mills — Purina Mills SunFresh Recipe line of premium feeds provide poultry enthusiasts with an all-natural nutrition program for the life span of their chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys.

Chicken Health and Behavior Resources
Newland Poultry
http://www.newlandgrange.com/CHICKEN-HEALTH-and-BEHAVIOUR%281660699%29.htm

The Chicken Vet – UK
http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/health-and-common-diseases/index.aspx

USDA
This site has great tips for keeping you and your birds healthy. They also offer a free disease-testing service.
To find out more, call 1-866-536-7593,
www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/birdbiosecurity

Housing:
Coops and Coop Building Plans
HandcraftedCoops.com – Portable Chicken Coops. Traditional A-frame Chicken Arks

The Garden Coop — Offering detailed plans for easy-to-build backyard coops. Includes materials list, step-by-step instructions, illustrations, photos, and tips.

Books and Ebooks

Folks, This Ain’t Normal: A Farmer’s Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World
Joel Salatin

Chick Days – An Absolute Beginner’s Guide.
Raising Chickens from Hatchlings to Laying Hens
Jenna Woginrich

Keeping Chickens
All You Need to Know to care for a Happy, Healthy Flock
Ashley English

The Chicken Health Handbook
Gail Damerow

Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens, 3rd Edition
Gail Damerow

Magazines
Mother Earth News

Hobby Farms Magazine

Backyard Poultry

We learned today that one of our favorite magazines, This Old House, named our portable chicken coop a Top 100 Best New Home Product of 2012.

Along with thousands of happy customers and their backyard hens, This Old House loves our chicken coop design!

See both sizes of our Portable chicken coops

Animal Behaviorist, Jonathan Balcombe, speaks about the little-known natural intelligence of chickens. Chickens have an unusually sophisticated communication system. They have some 25 to 30 calls, that scientists have discovered, that communicate specific messages to the birds they share their chicken coop with. Listen to this series of bird calls.