Our first attempt ...

So in the process of building chicken coop number two, I actually ended up building chicken coop number three, affectionately known as the "Dog House Coop." Coop number two remains unfinished as yet.

The "Dog House Coop"

Weather-proofed with vinyl banners & rubber roofing 

This one was built out of wood pallets and every scrap of plywood — any wood — that I could find! Why? Well, I wanted to create a nursery for our broody hen Gandie (flock #1). She's been broody for nearly a month, but her/our suburban flock is rooster-less, so I left an egg under her a week ago to keep her happy. 

In the meantime, I have been collecting [assumed] fertile eggs from our more rural flock #2 (6 hens, 4 roosters) and with the Dog House Coop complete, it was time to move Gandie to her very own nursery, and give her a go at incubating and hatching some fertile eggs, and maybe raising the chicks. This is our first attempt at hatching chicks!

The nursery is ready ... filled with pine shavings.

Eight, we-hope-fertile, eggs collected last week (you can see the date written on them!)
ready for incubation

Gandie settled right in on top of all nine eggs (eight plus the one she had already been sitting on)

The countdown is on ... August 26-27 should be hatch day!