Big enough coop?

[CKfarm22]

Actually it's was 1097.00 and we felt it was better for our needs and would be better for our girls there not in a coop sleeping with the poop it drops right into the dropping tray it stayed cooler in the heat wave then the wood coop we have we had a thermometer in each I clean it every other day which take me couple of minutes where the wood one was very hard for me to keep clean and hard to keep bugs out of they have the omlet with the 6ft omlet run connected to a 10 by 20 ft run with 2 other houses they can use and tons of places for them to perch on and also get to free roam couple days a week on 3 acres they choose to tuck themselves in every night at 745pm in the omlet they are happy and safe and as with all of our animals friends we want them to live wonderful happy lives so I won't be forcing them to sleep anywhere as long as where they choose to sleep play hangout is safe and clean it's OK with us

Still not big enough for 5 hens but you do you. Just don’t be surprised if they start bullying one another because they don’t have enough space

 

[aje]

I have 5 chicken houses with runs. Two of them are chicken tractors that can be moved as the grass gets eaten and trampled on. One is 4 x 12ft. and the other is 4 x10ft. The houses are about 3 to 4 ft. above ground so the chickens have more running space. I keep them in the pens until for about a month before I let them out to run. That way they know where to go at dusk. There are two roosts on one pen and three in another. One holds 5 white Giants with no problem. The other has 23 bantom hens plus a rooster. It has 3 roosts which is plenty of room. They just all want to be on two of the roosts. They seem to want to huddle together. There are three nest boxes in one and four in the other. But they all want to lay in the same nest box.

 

[Granny Fixit]

Still not very clued up on this, would this be big enough for 4 average sized hens and a cockerel? It’s only for them to sleep in as they’re free range in the day.
Not sure if it’s big enough would appreciate other opinions

I started with one very similar. My problem was since the roosts were on the same level as the nests, they slept in the nests and pooped in them. Also the roosts came out of the socket and every morning they would be lying on the floor.
after one season the thin walls and cheap construction caused the whole house to shift (even though it was leveled on concrete pad) and it became too much of a hassle to yank it sideways to get the door open and closed.
that house was the bane of my existence and I abandoned it in less than a year. It cost $350 so I didn’t think it would be so cheaply made.
After I move the chickens to a better house, critters chewed right through the “wood” of the walls and floor Seemingly overnight.
I would never recommend that style to anyone.

 

[McChooky]

Like 4 by 4 I believe I've got 5 girls in it and they have tons of space my girls only use it to sleep and lay

I just built a 30 Sq ft "barely get by" coop for 6 chickens and they sleep in it since they have no other choice. It is vented good.It also has windows.Chickens need someplace warm out of the wind,rain and snow where they can huddle and just do ordinary things like be chickens. They don't just sleep in their coops its all they've got in cold weather.When I can do better by mine I will..

 

[CKfarm22]

I just built a 30 Sq ft "barely get by" coop for 6 chickens and they sleep in it since they have no other choice. It is vented good.It also has windows.Chickens need someplace warm out of the wind,rain and snow where they can huddle and just do ordinary things like be chickens. They don't just sleep in their coops its all they've got in cold weather.When I can do better by mine I will..

Do you have roosts, nesting boxes, and a run? The size seems great for 6 chickens considering they need 5 sq ft per bird
edit: pictures would help

 

[McChooky]

4x4 would be 16 sq ft. Each bird needs at least 5 sq ft per bird in the coop.

I imagine if a person kept a mixed flock of aggressive breeds with docile birds in a overcrowded coop or run in bad weather some of them would be injured rather badly.
My 6 have a 30 sq ft coop they're locked it at dark and in the morning I let them out in their 48 sq ft run. Feathers would be flying everywhere if I kept these 6 locked up in this set up for long. This was all they had until I completed the 120 sq ft ext.Feathers were flying!

 

[McChooky]

Do you have roosts, nesting boxes, and a run? The size seems great for 6 chickens considering they need 5 sq ft per bird
edit: pictures would help

Yes its big enough but barely...

 

[CKfarm22]

I imagine if a person kept a mixed flock of aggressive breeds with docile birds in a overcrowded coop or run in bad weather some of them would be injured rather badly.
My 6 have a 30 sq ft coop they're locked it at dark and in the morning I let them out in their 48 sq ft run. Feathers would be flying everywhere if I kept these 6 locked up in this set up for long. This was all they had until I completed the 120 sq ft ext.Feathers were flying!

Even so, 30 sq ft is normal for 6 birds. 6x 5 sq ft = 30 sq ft. But bigger is always better. She has a 4x4 coop for 5 chickens, that’s not big enough.

 

[McChooky]

Do you have roosts, nesting boxes, and a run? The size seems great for 6 chickens considering they need 5 sq ft per bird
edit: pictures would help

Even so, 30 sq ft is normal for 6 birds. 6x 5 sq ft = 30 sq ft. But bigger is always better. She has a 4x4 coop for 5 chickens, that’s not big enough.

I agree that coop will be a disaster soon as cold weather comes.I suspect some will try to roost outside instead of in. My friends chicken coop isn't predator proof.They're trapped if a predator gets inside.They choose to roost in trees and only lay in theirs. The problem with chickens is it takes a while to learn what they need and nothing beats experience.We all learn the hard way if we don't listen to those who've kept chickens a long time.

 

[CKfarm22]

I agree that coop will be a disaster soon as cold weather comes.I suspect some will try to roost outside instead of in. My friends chicken coop isn't predator proof.They're trapped if a predator gets inside.They choose to roost in trees and only lay in theirs. The problem with chickens is it takes a while to learn what they need and nothing beats experience.We all learn the hard way if we don't listen to those who've kept chickens a long time.

I’m new to chickens also, but i know bigger is always better. She says that they choose to go into the 4x4 coop but it might just be because it’s new.