Homesteading Project - DIY Chicken Nesting Boxes Using Kitty Litter Buckets

Front View of Nesting Buckets

RW, Jr. and Medicine Man spent some time yesterday finishing up their DIY nesting boxes for the main chicken coop. Some extensive repairs were made on the main coop and some additional coop space was added. In the above picture, you can see the buckets with fresh hay ready for the little ladies. The raised nesting boxes will make it easier to harvest the eggs once someone has seen and made the birth announcements that the Hen's have laid the eggs. Saving time with harvesting eggs means more time for other chores and even a good egg breakfast.

Side View of Raised Nesting Buckets

Here's a side view that shows how the buckets fit in the raised portion of the holder for the new nesting buckets. RW, Jr. and myself put this together using some scrap lumber. The buckets fit easily into the raised platform. There are some additional ground nesting buckets visible in the background.

View of Bucket with Partial Lid

A small section of the lid was left on the nesting buckets to help hold in the nesting material. The lids cut easily with a knife and the partial lids really help in retaining the nesting material.

Kitty Litter Bucket

Since the regular round buckets aren't always available in sufficient quantities, it was decided to use empty kitty litter buckets to make the nesting boxes. There was no shortage of kitty litter buckets available thanks to the Cat Lady.

Raised Ground Nesting Buckets

RW, Jr. also made a small raised platform about 4 inches high for the ground nesting buckets. These are for those hens that feel more comfortable at ground level. With no shortage of kitty litter buckets, there'll be plenty of nests for the hens.

It is always important to utilize all your resources. Usually a simple solution to your needs can be found quite easily if you spend a little time looking in the right place. 

Got DIY nesting buckets?

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Riverwalker’s Book Review - The Homesteading Handbook

The Homesteading Handbook by Abigail Gehring is a basic guide suitable for those wishing to become more self-reliant and pursue a simpler lifestyle by developing homesteading skills. The book has an extensive section on home canning and an equally impressive amount on gardening. Growing your own food and being able to preserve it is a major part of homesteading. There is also adequate information for the novice included in this book. It also includes information on a wide variety of topics and subjects that can be of interest to the person new to or currently involved in homesteading.

Even if you’re just looking to save some money by growing and preserving your own food, this guide will help you achieve that goal. If you are looking for ideas about alternative energy projects, tips on raising chickens, building sheds and fences or a variety of other homesteading projects, you can find worthwhile information in this guide. It can most definitely help you learn how to live off the land.

The Homesteading Handbook covers just about everything that is homestead related. While detailed information on many of the topics is somewhat limited, it has enough information to properly steer your homesteading efforts in the direction you wish to go. It’s a fantastic beginner’s homesteading guide that can get you started on a path to being more self-reliant. This guide was very informative on the subject of modern day homesteading and covers a multitude of topics in a very simple and easy to read format at a reasonable price.

The Homesteading Handbook is available here:

The Homesteading Handbook: A Back to Basics Guide to Growing Your Own Food, Canning, Keeping Chickens, Generating Your Own Energy, Crafting, Herbal Medicine, and More (Back to Basics Guides)

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Riverwalker's Pics - Grandpa and His Mule

Thought you might like seeing a picture of my great grandpa and his mule. Many of the Riverwalker clan have always had a couple of mules around to help with the work. My great grandpa had a pair of mules as far back as I can remember.

I plan on a series of more pictures of the Riverwalker family and hope you enjoy them. Some of the pictures aren't the best quality as they are pretty old and had to be scanned into digital versions.

Got mule?

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker

Raising Horses

There is a great post on Raising Horses over at the Texas Preppers Network that many of you may find of interest. YeOldFurt, a member of TPN, is doing a series of posts on raising horses that will have some very valuable information and insight on raising horses. So saddle up and head over to TPN and learn a little about raising horses.

Staying above the water line!

Riverwalker