Chicken tractor dolly?

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I built this chicken tractor a few years ago to put older chicks in. Turns out I can't use it for anything other than a day pen for broody chickens because we have too many "freed" mink that were unleashed on the countryside. They dig under the edge and kill anything left in the tractor over night. Mink are surplus killers and they're really hard to trap. Lesson learned the hard way. I lost 33 of 36 5-week old black broiler chicks one night. Big thank you to PETA from me... for the brain-washed thugs who "freed" thousands of mink from local mink farms with bolt cutters in the middle of the night. Rant over.... what's done is done. --When I built this.... I didn't realize that with every passing year.... it would get heavier and heavier to move to fresh greens. The handles served me well the 1st year but lately.... I'm barely able to move this beast. Most people using chicken tractors simply drag them to fresh greens using a tractor. All I've got is a lawn mower on its last leg. Has anyone here ever fabricated any type of a pen dolly that might work for me that I could copy? I've got about an inch clearance where I could slip something under the frame at the front of the unit and wheels at the rear. A standard dolly for moving furniture didn't work too well. ----Any photos or design suggestions would be very much appreciated.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:I've built several tractors using EMT conduit. Much lighter weight than wood. This thread (post #14) has a picture of an early model without the shade cloth or feeders. http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...ot-emt-conduitBigger wheels would likely really help.I made some J shaped brackets for a friends chicken tractor. The J was at a slant and allowed the axle to drop when the tractor was lifted slightly... giving it more clearance when being moved. I couldn't find the photo of the brackets installed but I did have a render. He used a piece of 5/8 round rod for the axle and some wheelbarrow tires.  His tractor is huge wood monster with a chicken house. He has layers.
Reply:Here is a possible conversion of a lawn tractor utility trailer. Mount some hinged hooks at the back to capture the frame of the chicken tractor. Tilt the trailer, hook the frame, latch the hooks in place and then tilt the trailer back into towing position. The front of the frame is lifted off the ground with leverage and is then towable with your mounted wheels in the back of the frame.Here is my crude illustration.
Reply:Originally Posted by forhireI've built several tractors using EMT conduit. Much lighter weight than wood.
Reply:I agree with forhire on the bigger wheels. Go taller and wider, it will help ease the load of moving it. The EMT frame sounds like a winner also, being much lighter than the wooden one you have now. Plus it will give you some practice welding on thin material.If you have a paved slab you could move it to at night, that might help with the mink problem. Unless they can dig through concrete or asphalt.
Reply:forhire> Oh gawd that thing is so incredibly heavy. I made it out of wood because that's all I knew how to do back then. I for sure would have preferred conduit but my tractor is what it is for the time being. Soon as I have to replace what I have.... I'll be sure to steal your chicken tractor design. I love it and subscribed to that thread so I could find it again!!! Thanks for finding it and adding a link to it. Your poultry tractor looks leaps and bounds better than what I currently have at probably a fraction of the weight. --The J shaped bracket is definitely out of my skill set... probably for a long time. I love it though and do understand how it works. --chuckhole> Your "crude" illustration looks better than anything I could draw. I like that idea too. I'll add a beat up lawn tractor trailer to my ever growing list of things to look for on garbage day!!! --Bisteneau> Bigger wheels like forhire suggested I can probably add easily enough and that's something I could do soon as I bought new wheels. --Mink can't dig through the concrete on my patio or sidewalks but.... seems as if everything out there wants a free chicken dinner and when the chicks nestle in a corner of the chicken tractor to go to sleep for the night.... it never fails a raccoon comes along and sticks his paw through the chicken wire and pulls a meal toward him. Before I tacked down the chicken wire with wood strips.... the coons were ripping the chicken wire off and helping themselves to meals on a regular basis. Raccoons do a number on sleeping chickens. I should probably have added hardware cloth around the bottom of the tractor to stop that but.... I haven't been using it for chicks ever since the mink incident and sure won't make the mistake of leaving those English orpingtons in there over night. As soon as the sun starts setting.... into the main run they go..... where they can be locked down in the coop for the night.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:Originally Posted by Equilibriumforhire> The J shaped bracket is definitely out of my skill set... probably for a long time. I love it though and do understand how it works.
Reply:You described exactly what's been happening. I've been getting tripped up by the bottom 2x4 anytime a wheel hits a little dip in the lawn.... it's just too heavy for me now. I've already done a face plant today trying to move it and ended up with that beast on my ankle. I sooooo love eating dirt and ending up with a chicken tractor on my ankle.... not. --I can do this, "Nail a 2x4 down each side with holes at the end. Put a pipe through the holes for a handle." I'll add some steel pipe to a list I've got of things to pick up. I'd think 1" should be fine. That's a great fix for now until I can figure out an actual dolly. --And yes. I'd love two of those J shaped brackets. Thank you. MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:Originally Posted by Equilibrium . . . Mink can't dig through the concrete on my patio or sidewalks but.... seems as if everything out there wants a free chicken dinner and when the chicks nestle in a corner of the chicken tractor to go to sleep for the night.... it never fails a raccoon comes along and sticks his paw through the chicken wire and pulls a meal toward him.
Reply:forhire, I have been lurking about here several years, your fixes on practical applications are always of interest. Liked the conduit chicken pen, thanks for postingGeezerPower Mig 255C185 TIGBlue 175 MIGRanger 8 Kohler 20HP1974 5K Lincoln/Wisconsin Powered (Cherry)Victor/Harris O/AK 487 Spool Gun
Reply:This is what I use on my tractor. it doesn't deal with the weight issue, but it is easy to use.The side rails are bent to allow the handle to clear any unevenness or clumps of grass when moving.Pick up one end, and slip the dolly under, then drop the handle on the ground. This reduces the clearance so the birds can't escape.Go to the other end, lift and drag to the next clean spot... rinse - repeat!I use rope with the hose over it, attached at the bottom to pull with; that way you stand further away and it puts less strain on your back.(Ignore the welds!)  They were the first.Last edited by Rimari; 07-17-2014 at 10:12 PM.
Reply:EquilibriumI second - forhire's motion - bigger wheels.Solid, non-pneumatic wheel-barrow tireswill hand-roll with ease.  They are about$20.00 ea. [shop around].The stub-axle 'fab mount' is on you.  If you extended the vertical members of each end to breast height - it would offera convenient mount for a 'push bar'.  This provides max-leverages for push.No gas required, and:If you built a dedicated trailer-tongue dolly, you could easily swing your Chicken-Prison to any axis.Opus
Reply:What i do is open the chicken coop door in the morning, let em out so they can eat real bugs and run around in the small wooded area, at night they came back on there own and i close up the coop.....simple, do i loose a few every now and then??? Yea, but i would rather be free and take my chances then caged up...u would be surprised how smart chickens really are....There no so stupid.....
Reply:forhire> Your check’s in the mail. Bet you’ve heard that a thousand times.   I dropped it in the mail Monday night. --The fix is in. I bought 10” wheels to replace the measly 6” wheels that were on the tractor but… I just might return them. Instead of nailing down 2 x 4’s from each side on top…. I screwed them in from the bottom of the frame up at an angle extending them about 12” away from the frame and added a length of pipe for a handle. I can’t believe how much easier it is moving this beast and I didn’t even change out the little wheels yet…. it is so incredibly easy to move that I don’t need to make a dolly but…. I’m going to anyway to get more practice in welding. I do intend to build another chicken tractor out of conduit soon as this one starts falling apart. It’s  5 years old…. it won’t last forever even with me covering it in tarps when not in use.  --Pin2hot> I had (still have) a two tiered fido fence that was wrapped around the perimeter of the tractor to deter opossums and raccoons. It did work to deter them…. didn’t work deterring the mink that dug under and dragged them out one by one then basically lopped off their heads leaving them to rot all over my yard. The electric barriers from Home Depot also don’t deter determined northern black water snakes that can slither under the 2” gap by the wheels. I’ve lost count of how many 4 week old Ameraucana chicks I’ve lost to Mr. Snake. I have to admit…. it’s sorta funny. I could always tell how many Mr. Snake ate by counting the lumps in him when he was sun bathing on the slate pile. --The electric barriers really do deter quite a few bandits…. just not all of the bandits I’ve got. I’d say they’d be a good fix for someone who didn’t live near water or in an area where over 20,000 minks were “freed” 20 years ago. The mink are out there and…. they’ve been reproducing. Water snakes don’t take LF birds…… they would take a bantam and for sure any chicks and  eggs they can get to  and believe it or not…. golf balls from nest boxes. Poor confused snakes.   I put golf balls in the nest boxes for new layers to get the “hint” to lay in a nest box instead of on the floor in the chicken coop and Mr Snake was snitching the golf balls and pooping them out by the slate pile. I put an end to the snake getting in the chicken coop by adding a sliding chicken door and an outer door that drops down in place at night. --Hardware cloth around the base about 18” up would work just as well deterring coons and possums as the Fido Fence. With one plus….  it doesn’t require electricity. Coons and possums strike at night when chicks/chickens are sleeping on the ground. They stick their paws right through the chicken wire. --Loved your t-shirts but then…. I’m an unapologetic carnivore. I’m not all that picky about my protein source.  Two more t-shirts you might like, http://www.zazzle.com/peta_people_ea...52286096474362 and http://www.zazzle.com/petofavpeople_...68423150674477. If you’re familiar with PETA’s “sea kitten” campaign…. this will crack you up, http://www.zazzle.com/sea_kitten_shi...23634378070317--Rimari> your design and chuckhole’s design incorporate a feature similar to that employed by Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms….  clearance reduction. It’s why regular hand carts don’t work…. the chicks spot the gap and bee line for it. --I’ll ignore your welds…. If you ignore mine. --OPUS_FERRO> I totally agree. The larger wheels forhire suggested will make a big difference… just don’t know that I’ll use them because his other suggestion enabled me to move it virtually effortlessly. I extended the angled 2 x 4s to about thigh height instead of chest height and I can actually move the beast myself. Chest height probably would be better for a man with more upper body strength than me. --I do plan on building a dedicated dolly…. I’m just poking around for materials and guess the end design will depend on what I can get from drop and surplus. --1awert1> I so wish I lived where you do. My life would be so much easier. We’ve got a day crew that likes a nice chicken dinner comprising stray dogs, coyotes, hawks, foxes, stray cats, and the occasional snake. We’ve got a night crew comprising raccoons, opossums,  skunks, a great horned owl that hangs out in the dead elm over the main run to the west and a barred owl hanging out in the Norway Maple I killed that’s standing to the east of the run. Now toss in the mink in numbers too big to ignore and it’s a wonder I’ve got any chickens at all. I have a 50 x 75’ layer chicken run enclosed with hog panels that have chicken wire attached to them. So far…. canines (including one of my dogs that will kill anything she can sink her teeth into) haven’t been able to scale it. The run is laced with criss-crossing and zig-zagging fishing line to deter day time attacks by hawks…. hawks have excellent vision and can see the fishing line. They know it’s there and can’t navigate through it to land and kill my chickens. I also have two 16 x 16’ chicken runs that have much smaller coops that can be locked down at night also laced with fishing line. I have 4 dogs…. a Great Dane, an English Mastiff, and two working German Shepherds. I started letting them out to do their duty in the side yard where the runs are and Mr. Snake didn’t like all the commotion so he retreated to his slate pile…. truth is…. my one dog would have killed him if he hadn’t.  The chicken “prison” was built pretty much to grow out meat chicks only…. rangers, Cornish x, and black broilers are not very active birds once they start packing on the weight. They basically sit on the ground then walk a few feet to a feeder…. rest on the ground… walk a few feet to a waterer…. rest on the ground and…. repeat throughout the day. It’s the breeding…. they’re not bred to live beyond 4 months. Last year my friends collectively lost hundreds of meat birds to heat stroke and I didn’t lose any. I’ve found the non-heritage meat breeds need full shade in summer and fans running on them when the temps get above 90° F or there wouldn’t be anything to send to freezer camp.  The tractor served me well enough until…. the mink incident. Now I’m using it for broody chickens that I put in the tractor and back in the main run at dusk and next spring I’ll be using it for 6 new layers that I’ll need to keep isolated from the layers in my main run for 4 months.  Now that I can move the beast myself….. I’ll be able to get it up onto my asphalt driveway at night to stop the mink and I’ll stop the coons by adding hardware cloth until the new birds can be moved into the main run. Forgot to mention my runs have fruit trees in them that drop assorted goodies for my feathered piranhas and that I’ve got grazing squares for fresh greens. Plenty of bugs in my runs since they’ve not been reduced to compacted mud.  I know my situation isn’t ideal like yours…. I do the best I can though. --Ta da.... the fix!!!--And on that note… I’ll post again with photo of what I come up with for a dedicated dolly which…. I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to do on my own once I start welding at home.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:If you have welding skills, adapt a snowmobile dolly. They have a L shaped frame with wheels at the angle of the frame, at the toe they have pegs that catch under the foot rests of the sled. Push down on the handle, hook a short chain to the other end, then lift. A 700 lb. snowmobile can be moved over rough terrain by one person. These may be heavier duty than you need. Steal the design, make yours lighter duty, or make it heavy enough to use as a pallet mover also.
Reply:Originally Posted by OPUS FERROEquilibriumI second - forhire's motion - bigger wheels.Solid, non-pneumatic wheel-barrow tireswill hand-roll with ease.  They are about$20.00 ea. [shop around].
Reply:WillieB> I had to look up what a snowmobile dolly was..... eesh..... those are heavy duty and very expensive. I'm sure they could be modified by following chuckhole and Rimari's designs... don't know where one of those could be picked up for a reasonable price though. We'll have to see what I come across in the next few months otherwise I'll have to fabricate a dedicated dolly from scratch.--123....> I really did buy bigger wheels from HF as was suggested by many trying to help me. They're 10". Don't be fooled by that cat that's always nosing its way into my photos.... it's an 18 pounder and is making the wheels I purchased look smaller than they really are. The addition of larger wheels would have for sure made any tractor easier to move around. I followed the suggestion of adding a handle extended from the frame 1st. It made moving the tractor such a breeze that it negated the need to replace the existing wheels on mine. I'll probably set them aside for another project as opposed to returning them because they're decent wheels. ----Originally, I followed the design of chicken tractors I found online. Many of which were not constructed from lumber.... my mistake.... too heavy. Most of which were lightweight construction similar to that which forhire built with no wheels because they were designed to be dragged to new greens by a farm tractor. A few had wheels on one end so since I didn't have a farm tractor at my house.... I added wheels... my ground was too uneven to add the equivalent of sliders. The addition of wheels to any chicken tractor leaves a gap between the frame and the ground.  There's about a 2" gap at the end of my chicken tractor that has the wheels. This gap isn't an issue if larger chickens are in the tractor but I learned all too soon that it was for several weeks after chicks were moved into it from a brooder. They saw the space and kept trying to get out. I cut a 4' 2 x 4 to cover the gap at the end where the wheels are and two 3' lengths for the sides that plug up the gap that aren't showing in the photos. They're held in place by left over retaining blocks. Moving the tractor to fresh greens then properly positioning the 2 x4s helps contain smaller birds. I suspect the reason why internet searches don't yield chicken tractors with wheels on all 4 corners is because of the gap that would be created around the entire frame.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:Originally Posted by EquilibriumI suspect the reason why internet searches don't yield chicken tractors with wheels on all 4 corners is because of the gap that would be created around the entire frame.
Reply:Ohhhh.... please share your "vision" with me once you've had time to sketch it out. --Chicken tractors come in real handy. I've seen people who have a 1/4 acre dedicated to their tractors and they use them exclusively to grow out turkeys. They line up the tractors in a soldier row and move them every few days and by the time November rolls around.... the tractors are all the way at the other end of the field. --Rabbit tastes better than chicken IMHO and unlike old birds that have stopped laying.... old rabbits don't get chewy like alligator. Great source of protein.... shouldn't be one's only source of protein though. --Rabbits tunnel.... I have Champagne d'Argent. My rabbit housing is 3.5' off the ground to minimize exposure to wild rabbits and in full shade. How did you did you cut the sun to them so they didn't stroke out how on earth did you stop them from tunneling under the frame of a rabbit tractor>>>? Chicken wire attached to the bottom of the frame? I would think that would work. They'd still have access to any greens poking up through the wire.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:Originally Posted by EquilibriumOhhhh.... please share your "vision" with me once you've had time to sketch it out.
Reply:Originally Posted by EquilibriumOhhhh.... please share your "vision" with me once you've had time to sketch it out.
Reply:"They had a nice diet of quack grass. It was only for a few weeks. Then one Sunday we were treated to a "chicken dinner" but the rabbits had mysteriously disappeared. hmmmmm" Too too too funny.--Your chicken tractor design should be titled, "When chicken tractors go high tech." That design would work and swivel wheels could be added to the front easily enough. I bet there are a lot of urban poultry hobbyists out there like me who resorted to building theirs from wood out of necessity. You need something.... you go online.... you sponge up what you can.... then build with what ever materials and tools you have to "git r done". Most people are familiar with wood and have or at least know someone who has the tools to work with that material.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin