Today Dick and I went on a field trip to Seven Pines Farm in Verndale (Minnesota) 45 miles from Brainerd accompanied by about 20 other members of our local food co-op. The tour was hosted by owners Kent and Linda Solberg whose focus is grass-based agriculture and pastured egg production. They use New Zealand-style swing parlors to secure their cows for milking in their immaculately sanitary dairy operation. To provide fresh grazing, animals are rotated to different grassy acreage to provide maximum nutrition. To facilitate the moves, the two chicken coops are built on top of boat trailers to provide portabilty and a large fenced protective enclosure is transported and set up again in the new locations. This is an exterior photo of the portable chicken coops.
This is an interior view of one of the portable chicken coops. Eggs are collected by lifting the hinged lid on the box attached to the side of each coop.
This is a photo of the chickens winter living quarters. It is a greenhouse so no artificial heat source is needed. You can see one set of nesting boxes near the door at the far end. There is another set near the door where I was standing to shoot the photo. Think about it... In the spring, when the chickens return to their portable coop, the structure could be used as a greenhouse to start garden plants. Does this make perfect sense or what?!