In the world of rearing chickens, there are all kinds of gimmicks and online fads that come and go because they don’t really work, but when it comes to chicken tractors, this is a method of keeping chickens that has a lot going for it.
Making a DIY chicken tractor doesn’t have to be difficult either, so we’ve scoured the internet to see what other people have been trying – and as a result, here are 22 of the best plans we found that you might like to try at home.
1. Chicken Tractors 101: Benefits and Build Guidelines
If you’re new to the concept of chicken tractors, this post is a great place to start. It gives you a comprehensive introduction to the idea, explaining all the benefits of this type of moveable coop. Following that, it also gives you advice on how to build one yourself – and although there’s no detailed plan to follow, you’ll still be able to get an idea of what the project entails.
2. Build a Chicken Tractor – Mill Gap Farms
As you can see from the start of this video, the chicken tractor it teaches us to make is a simple version, but it looks highly professional, and it’s also extremely easy to build. The rest of the video takes you through the steps you need to follow, and there’s really nothing complicated involved – which means if you like the look of it, there’s no reason you won’t be able to construct one for yourself.
3. DIY Chicken Tractor Plans: 13 Steps – Instructables
Whenever we need a plan for a DIY project, the Instructables site is always a reliable resource to turn to. That’s because the tutorials there are invariably well-written and easy to follow – and this one is no different. This plan takes you through the process of building a chicken tractor in 13 logical steps, and there are also plenty of useful diagrams that help you understand everything you need to do.
4. DIY 1-Hour Chicken Tractor Build for $25 – The Crockers
Making a DY chicken tractor needn’t be expensive or time-consuming – as this plan proves. In this video, you’ll learn how to build a chicken tractor that will take no longer than an hour to put together and won’t cost more than about $25. It’s ideal for raising chicks for meat, which is exactly what these YouTubers built it for – and if you need something similar, it could be the ideal plan for you to copy.
5. Chicken Tractor: 4 Steps – Instructables
Here’s another great plan from Instructables but this time an even simpler one that teaches you how to build a chicken tractor in only four steps. As ever, it includes clear and logical instructions, a list of the tools and materials you’ll need and lots of photos to help you understand the project, making this another chicken tractor design that just about anyone will be able to manage.
6. Easy DIY Chicken Tractors – Grow Dinner Aquaponics
In this video, this YouTubing farmer demonstrates not just one but two high-quality chicken tractors that most chicken keepers would be more than happy to own. Unfortunately, he doesn’t provide a detailed plan or a step-by-step guide to follow if you want to build one. However, they don’t look particularly challenging to build, so some enterprising DIYers out there might enjoy trying to build something similar just from what they see in the video.
7. Chicken Tractor Plans: Affordable & Functional – Abundant Permaculture
One of the things we like about this plan is that it takes the time to go into the details of why it’s worth building one as well as why these things actually work. Then, if that’s enough to convince you to build one, it provides detailed notes explaining how to do it. The design is simple, but this tractor will allow you to keep a small flock of chickens, and you won’t have to spend a fortune doing it.
8. PortaPen – DIY Portable Poultry Tractor
Here’s an ingenious design we really loved, mostly because of the flip-up wheels that allow a single person to move this chicken coop with a minimum of effort. With 200 square feet of floor space inside, it’s also one of the larger options – and if you like the look of it, you can find detailed plans for building one just like it in the notes below the video.
9. DIY Chicken Tractor Plan – Backyard Poultry
As this plan mentions at the beginning, this is a fun project that most DIY enthusiasts will enjoy, and building one will allow you to keep chickens in flock sizes ranging from small to large – all you have to do to accommodate them is adapt the dimensions. We like the way the instructions are clear and detailed, making it an easy plan to follow. So if you want to try building a simple chicken tractor, why not have a go at making this one?
10. The Best DIY Chicken Tractor Wheels Using Trailer Jacks
In this short video, you’ll learn how to add wheels to a chicken tractor to make it more mobile. In fact, this is an update to an earlier video where this YouTuber demonstrated how to build the chicken tractor you see here – so if you want to know how he made that, you can check out the original video too.
11. How to Build a Movable Chicken Coop or Tractor – PetHelpful
Here’s a plan that teaches you how to make a classic A-frame chicken tractor, and what we love about this design is how clean and professional it looks. It’s the kind of tractor that’s easy to move around, allowing you to take your chickens to new foraging ground with a minimum of effort. It’s not too hard to make either, so we’re sure plenty of people will be keen to try building one just like it.
12. Chicken Tractor for Egg Layers – Combahee Outdoors
If you need a chicken tractor where you can house egg-laying chickens, this video should be worth a watch because that’s exactly what this YouTuber has built. As he explains, he’s combined several other ideas while also making a few adaptations of his own – and this chicken tractor is the result. We can see this being a popular design due to how easy it is to build as well as its functionality, so check it out and see if it’s the kind of thing you need!
13. How to Make a Predator-Proof Chicken Tractor – thehomesteadingrd.com
One problem that all chicken keepers face is predators – and this is even more the case when keeping them in chicken tractors since they tend to be less secure than fixed coops. However, the design this blogger shows us is strong enough to keep most predatory animals outside of the coop, so if you’re particularly worried about losing your birds, this could be just the solution you need.
14. Building A Chicken Tractor For 50 Chickens – The Cook Family Homestead
If you’re looking for a video that will explain everything you need to do to build a large chicken tractor, then you’ve found it. The model this YouTuber creates is big enough to hold up to 50 meat chickens, and we love the way he explains and demonstrates everything so clearly, making this plan extremely easy to follow. It looks great when it’s done too, and the chickens he’s keeping in there look quite content with their home.
15. The Quest to Design and Build the Best Chicken Tractor – The Seasonal Homestead
As these YouTubers explain, they have lots of experience building all kinds of DIY chicken coops – and in this video, they show us how they put all that experience to use in trying to build the “best chicken tractor” possible. As the video progresses and the chicken tractor starts to take form, the experience begins to show. The end result looks highly impressive, so this is an idea we’re sure plenty of people will be itching to copy.
16. Easy Small-Scale DIY Chicken Tractor – Sow the Land
There are quite a few plans for large chicken tractors online, but not everyone needs anything quite that big – so here’s a useful plan for a scaled-down version. We love watching this YouTuber at work since he’s clearly a skilled woodworker, and it’s great to be able to see exactly what you need to do to build a chicken tractor like his. His upload also has info about where to find a detailed plan, so this is an idea anyone with reasonable DIY skills will be able to recreate themselves.
17. Custom A-Frame Chicken Tractor For (Almost) Free – fromscratchfarmstead.com
One of the big advantages of DIY is that it can save you lots of cash – and as you can guess from the title of this plan, this is a chicken tractor that will cost you very little to construct. The wood for this A-frame mobile coop was mostly scavenged from an old kids’ playset, and the large chicken tractor the plan teaches you to make has plenty of space to keep a medium-sized flock in comfort. This is an ingenious idea we enjoyed a lot – give it a read and see if you agree!
18. Easy Lightweight Chicken Tractor Build – You Can Farm
The great thing about the chicken tractor in this video is that, since it’s made primarily from PVC, it’s extremely lightweight and easy to move. That means it’s easy for one person to drag without the need for a tractor to tow it, which is ideal for people who keep chickens but don’t have access to a vehicle.
19. The $5 Chicken Tractor – Justin Rhodes
Here’s another great video that will save you a whole pile of cash since it teaches you how to make a functional chicken tractor for no less than $5. As you can see from the tutorial, it’s so easy to make using not much more than just a few pieces of scrap wood that you should be able to find lying around. It won’t take long either, which means you’ll be raising chickens in one just like it before you know it.
20. Pasture Your Poultry with this DIY Chicken Tractor – Hobby Farms
If you like plans that give you all the details of everything you need along with precise measurements and clear instructions to follow, this is the tutorial for you. It teaches you how to make a classic A-frame chicken tractor for a small flock of birds, and with the quality of the plan along with all the useful photos, it’s the kind of project people with just about any level of DIY experience will be able to complete.
21. Portable Chicken Coop: Step-by-Step Build – E Fleming
With its engrossing timelapse shot of this DIYer at work and the peaceful music that accompanies it, this is a video we enjoyed watching a lot. There’s not much in the way of explanation here, but if you’re confident in your DIY skills, this is a project that shouldn’t pose too many problems – and if you manage it, you will have built yourself a highly professional mobile chicken coop to be proud of.
22. Build a PVC Chicken Tractor – Grit
We love the look of the chicken tractor in the photos that have been posted with this plan, and we’re sure we won’t be the only ones. Fortunately, this post also includes detailed instructions for how to put it together, so if you like it as much as we do, it shouldn’t be a particularly hard job for you to make one yourself. A simple and inexpensive design, just the way we like our DIY. We approve!
Loads of great ideas for portable chicken coops
As we’ve seen, there’s no shortage of ingenious designs for chicken tractors that will allow you to keep chickens safe and healthy while moving them from place to place for more varied foraging.
We’ve enjoyed collecting these plans for you, so we hope you’ve enjoyed reading and watching them too – and above all, we hope we’ve helped you find the ideas and inspiration you need to start building a DIY chicken tractor of your own.
