{"id":107825,"date":"2023-03-22T07:00:19","date_gmt":"2023-03-22T11:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?p=107825"},"modified":"2024-03-11T09:04:47","modified_gmt":"2024-03-11T13:04:47","slug":"burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/","title":{"rendered":"Burning Question: What’s The Perfect Chicken Coop?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spring doesn\u2019t just bring sunshine, flowers and baby chicks. It also brings an increase in brand (and relatively) new poultry owners seeking advice as to how they can best provide for their fledgling flocks. One of the questions I receive at this time every year is one that frankly makes my husband cringe. He can tell just by the way I gaze through the kitchen window at our coops that someone has emailed or messaged me <\/span>the<\/span><\/i> question. <\/span><\/p>\n

And this year, I\u2019ve received the question twice … and it\u2019s only just spring. <\/span>What is the perfect coop?\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

There Is No Short Answer<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Those eager for my answer to this question are occasionally disappointed to discover that there is no short answer. Too many factors play a part in determining what constitutes a perfect coop for each person who asks. <\/span><\/p>\n

My immediate response to \u201cWhat is the perfect coop?\u201d is \u201cWhere in the U.S. are you?\u201d Each region\u2019s particular climate\u2014snowy, rainy, hot\u2014will influence the design of the coop. Hotter climates require a more open layout with more ventilation openings, while colder, wetter climates call for an enclosed design. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Also Read: Protect your chicken coop from predators with these tips.<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

More to Think About\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Another important regional factor to consider is the predator population: \u201cWhat kind of predators frequent your area?\u201d With a few exceptions, this question has always taken advice seekers by surprise. <\/span><\/p>\n

For those who live near wilderness parks\u2014inhabited by raccoons, foxes, weasels, opossum, coyotes and other carnivores\u2014having a contained run (covered, with fencing continuing at least 12 inches underground) and a secure coop is crucial. Even in urban and suburban areas, backyard chicken owners need to evaluate the potential for predator attack … even if that predator is the neighbor\u2019s dog or cat. <\/span><\/p>\n

There also exists the threat of an aerial attack by hawks, falcons, vultures, owls and other birds of prey. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Size of flock also plays a vital part in coop design<\/a><\/strong>. Those living in communities with restrictions regarding how many chickens can be kept have it easy. A coop that accommodates a maximum of four hens does not need to be large. Those living in an agricultural or rural zone have a little more thinking to do, especially if breeding will be part of the program. The coop will need to accommodate the size of the future flock, not just the current one. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s the nestbox issue. My \u201cdon\u2019t forget your nestboxes!\u201d typically gets me the \u201coh, yeah!\u201d realization. But yes, if you\u2019re going to have hens, they\u2019re going to need a place to lay their eggs, one that you can easily access but is still predator proof. <\/span><\/p>\n

The rule of thumb is one nestbox per four hens. But adding an extra one never hurts, especially if the chickens of choice tend to go broody. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Human Factor<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s not just the animals that need to be taken into account when considering the perfect coop. Local laws<\/a>, ordinances and home owner association regulations will all affect any additional structures built on your property, whether it\u2019s a coop or a garden shed. <\/span><\/p>\n

These rules can dictate the color of your coop, the square footage of the structure, the distance of the coop from your home and from property lines, and whether you can run electrical and water out to the building. Some municipalities even dictate who can build your coop<\/a><\/strong>\u2014e.g. a licensed contractor\u2014and the hours construction can take place … and even go so far as to require a review of blueprints prior to approval. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHave you checked your local laws?\u201d has never failed to surprise the hopeful flock owner. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The other human to consider is yourself. \u201cHow will you make the coop easy for you?\u201d tends to get the response of \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Your coop design<\/a><\/strong> has to be one that makes it easy for you to care for your birds. In addition to nestboxes that can be easily accessed, you will want a large, human-access door that allows you to easily sweep out the soiled litter and refill feeders and waterers. And speaking of feeders and waterers, give some thought as to whether you want traditional ones or built in, gravity-fed feeders and waterers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Also Read: <\/strong>10 Steps To Spring Clean Your Chicken Coop<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Another consideration is storage. Do you want to store feed, supplements and bedding in a special area in your coop, or will you be fine going back and forth between your coop and your garage, pole barn or shed? Would you like the pop door automated or are you fine opening and closing it manually? <\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, don\u2019t forget head space. I\u2019ve lost count of how many times I\u2019ve whacked my head entering our original coop\u2019s run because my husband built the entrance without taking our height into account.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Also Read:Considering chickens? Keep these four things in mind.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

My Perfect Coop<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Over the years my family has kept poultry\u2014not just chickens but ducks, turkeys and guineas\u2014we have had nine different coops (and three indoor brooders). My dreams for a new coop would be for a facility that would house all our poultry in separate sections, each with its own fully accessible nestbox and fully enclosed run, with storage and egg cleaning\/packing areas inside. <\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s much more to it, but that\u2019s where my mind goes when I look out my kitchen window each spring. <\/span><\/p>\n

I<\/span>f I were building my dream coop for just one flock, however, I\u2019d want it just like our current main coop\u2014the head-bonking one\u2014with just a handful of changes. For starters, I\u2019d redo the run to make it larger, taller and covered. I\u2019d definitely have plumbing and electricity installed (by contractors, as my township ordinances require). I\u2019d install solar panels on the roof and downspouts with rain-collection barrels. <\/span><\/p>\n

But that\u2019s about it for changes. It looks like we pretty much already have our dream coop.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s one of the most popular questions and has no easy answer: What’s the perfect chicken coop? Here are a few factors to determine the right coop for you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":163,"featured_media":107828,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[424,57,10727,10458,10456],"tags":[2477,6355,35],"class_list":["post-107825","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-animals","category-beginning-farmers","category-chicken-coops-and-housing","category-farm-garden","category-poultry","tag-chicken-coop","tag-coops","tag-poultry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Perfect Chicken Coop: Burning Questions Answered - HobbyFarms<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Check how to design the ideal chicken coop. Here are a few factors to determine the right coop. Build a perfect chicken coop with this comprehensive guide.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Burning Question: What's The Perfect Chicken Coop?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Check how to design the ideal chicken coop. Here are a few factors to determine the right coop. Build a perfect chicken coop with this comprehensive guide.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hobby Farms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FMAFarms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-03-22T11:00:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-03-11T13:04:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"462\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ana Hotaling\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ana Hotaling\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ana Hotaling\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/9fb9189b7cdab62030cb0c4124d8e6c6\"},\"headline\":\"Burning Question: What’s The Perfect Chicken Coop?\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-22T11:00:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-03-11T13:04:47+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\"},\"wordCount\":1017,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"chicken coop\",\"coops\",\"Poultry\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Animals\",\"Beginning Farmers\",\"Chicken Coops & Housing\",\"Farm & Garden\",\"Poultry\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\",\"name\":\"The Perfect Chicken Coop: Burning Questions Answered - HobbyFarms\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-03-22T11:00:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-03-11T13:04:47+00:00\",\"description\":\"Check how to design the ideal chicken coop. Here are a few factors to determine the right coop. Build a perfect chicken coop with this comprehensive guide.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":462,\"caption\":\"perfect chicken coop\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Burning Question: What’s The Perfect Chicken Coop?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/\",\"name\":\"Hobby Farms\",\"description\":\"Rural Living for Pleasure and Profit\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Hobby Farms\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png\",\"width\":586,\"height\":68,\"caption\":\"Hobby Farms\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/hobbyfarms\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/9fb9189b7cdab62030cb0c4124d8e6c6\",\"name\":\"Ana Hotaling\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/XteTrfXI-new_headshot-100x100.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/XteTrfXI-new_headshot-100x100.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Ana Hotaling\"},\"description\":\"Ana Hotaling and her husband, Jae, own FMA Farms, a heritage-poultry farm in Southeast Michigan. When not writing or juggling poultry, pets, and children, Ana works as an IT contractor and photography post-editor. She homeschools her youngest son and is active in both the cosplay and STARFLEET International communities.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FMAFarms\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/amhtravels\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/author\/ana-hotaling\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Perfect Chicken Coop: Burning Questions Answered - HobbyFarms","description":"Check how to design the ideal chicken coop. Here are a few factors to determine the right coop. Build a perfect chicken coop with this comprehensive guide.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Burning Question: What's The Perfect Chicken Coop?","og_description":"Check how to design the ideal chicken coop. Here are a few factors to determine the right coop. Build a perfect chicken coop with this comprehensive guide.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/","og_site_name":"Hobby Farms","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FMAFarms","article_published_time":"2023-03-22T11:00:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-03-11T13:04:47+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":462,"url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ana Hotaling","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@hobbyfarms","twitter_site":"@hobbyfarms","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ana Hotaling","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/"},"author":{"name":"Ana Hotaling","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/9fb9189b7cdab62030cb0c4124d8e6c6"},"headline":"Burning Question: What’s The Perfect Chicken Coop?","datePublished":"2023-03-22T11:00:19+00:00","dateModified":"2024-03-11T13:04:47+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/"},"wordCount":1017,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg","keywords":["chicken coop","coops","Poultry"],"articleSection":["Animals","Beginning Farmers","Chicken Coops & Housing","Farm & Garden","Poultry"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/","name":"The Perfect Chicken Coop: Burning Questions Answered - HobbyFarms","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg","datePublished":"2023-03-22T11:00:19+00:00","dateModified":"2024-03-11T13:04:47+00:00","description":"Check how to design the ideal chicken coop. Here are a few factors to determine the right coop. Build a perfect chicken coop with this comprehensive guide.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/AdobeStock_443711284-1.jpg","width":800,"height":462,"caption":"perfect chicken coop"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/burning-question-whats-the-perfect-chicken-coop\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Burning Question: What’s The Perfect Chicken Coop?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/","name":"Hobby Farms","description":"Rural Living for Pleasure and Profit","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization","name":"Hobby Farms","url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png","width":586,"height":68,"caption":"Hobby Farms"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms","https:\/\/x.com\/hobbyfarms"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/9fb9189b7cdab62030cb0c4124d8e6c6","name":"Ana Hotaling","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/XteTrfXI-new_headshot-100x100.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/XteTrfXI-new_headshot-100x100.jpg","caption":"Ana Hotaling"},"description":"Ana Hotaling and her husband, Jae, own FMA Farms, a heritage-poultry farm in Southeast Michigan. When not writing or juggling poultry, pets, and children, Ana works as an IT contractor and photography post-editor. She homeschools her youngest son and is active in both the cosplay and STARFLEET International communities.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FMAFarms","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/amhtravels\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/author\/ana-hotaling\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107825","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/163"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107825"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107825\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":118207,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107825\/revisions\/118207"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}