Things You Wish You Would Have Known?

[fireredcannon]

Personally no more than 6-7, unless they are seramas lol

 

[fireredcannon]

3-4 sqft per bird, 5x5=25÷3=8.3

 

[Orp]

#1 - I raised my baby chicks (30!) in my kitchen -- TWICE! You would have thought I learned from the first time around how dusty and messy they can be. So glad when I got them out of the house. Couldn't stop cleaning, cleaning, cleaning.

#2 - How persistent predators can be. From time to time I will have possum that just come into the coop and eat the chick feed. Chickens are now used to them -- don't mind a bit. When I set traps I catch a chicken too!

#3 - How mean roosters can be, especially when there is more than one. No roosters now but I do miss the cock-a-doodle-do.

 

[lazy gardener]

Would anyone like to weigh in on how many chicks a newbie should start with? This will be my first experience raising chicks (and adult chickens.) My coop/run will be approx 80 square feet. Thanks for any opinions on the matter!

The coop is 5x5

Welcome to BYC. You're going to have fun! So, it sounds like your coop is 25 s.f. and the run is 55 s.f.? Starting out as a newbie, I'd not have more than 5 birds in that space. You might even be better off keeping it down to 4. The smaller the flock and the smaller the coop/run, the more likelihood you will have behavior problems varying from aggression to feather picking and cannibalism. If the coop space is not at least 4' tall, you will have even more problems. If you have the option, build bigger. You'll be glad you did.

 

[Ainee]

So 8 + 1 serama? ;-) Thank you for your input!

 

[jennyf]

Would anyone like to weigh in on how many chicks a newbie should start with? This will be my first experience raising chicks (and adult chickens.) My coop/run will be approx 80 square feet. Thanks for any opinions on the matter!

That sounds like a max of around 6. Would second the advice to build bigger if you can to accommodate chicken math! I have six and am maxed out on space as well. One thing I did not consider getting them all at once that, assuming you don't lose to predation or illness, your egg production is going to decline quickly as they all age at the same rate. Of course the flip side of that is that you don't have to deal with integration issues getting them all at once. I'm trying to figure out how to expand to add another 3 next year. They are a lot of fun!

 

[Ainee]

Welcome to BYC. You're going to have fun! So, it sounds like your coop is 25 s.f. and the run is 55 s.f.? Starting out as a newbie, I'd not have more than 5 birds in that space. You might even be better off keeping it down to 4. The smaller the flock and the smaller the coop/run, the more likelihood you will have behavior problems varying from aggression to feather picking and cannibalism. If the coop space is not at least 4' tall, you will have even more problems. If you have the option, build bigger. You'll be glad you did.

Thank you so much for the welcome and the input! I'm laughing, looking at my original question, because I realize I was sooo excited today to know that I can finally get started with chickens, and can place an order for chicks, that I lost half the capacity for clear communication.
My coop will be 5x5 and will be off the ground. The run area will 78 sq feet, with the area underneath the coop included in the 78 sq ft. The coop itself will be approx 4 ft high - so the roof will be a little over 6 ft. I have the option of making the coop 5x6, which from what I've heard so far might be a good idea!
I was wondering whether to start off with the number of chicks that would be put it at full capacity when they're grown (6 or 7?) or start smaller, maybe 3 or 4? Seems like a silly question but I've heard some say that it's best to start small then add on later... I think I'm just overly excited and freaking out already! lol Thank you so much for the welcome and your thoughts! I appreciate it.

 

[Ainee]

That sounds like a max of around 6. Would second the advice to build bigger if you can to accommodate chicken math! I have six and am maxed out on space as well. One thing I did not consider getting them all at once that, assuming you don't lose to predation or illness, your egg production is going to decline quickly as they all age at the same rate. Of course the flip side of that is that you don't have to deal with integration issues getting them all at once. I'm trying to figure out how to expand to add another 3 next year. They are a lot of fun!

Thanks so much for your opinion. I was wondering the same thing about maxing out from the start, and then if no losses, one day having a coop full of non-laying hens, vs. trying to integrate a new batch of hens with the existing flock later on. I don't know if I'll be able to build much bigger. I do have the option of making the coop 5x6 instead of 5x5 which would help a tiny bit. If you did it over again do you think you'd start with 6? Or start with fewer then add a few later? Thanks!

 

[Ainee]

3-4 sqft per bird, 5x5=25÷3=8.3

So 8 full size hens, and 1 serama? ;-) Thank you for the input!

 

[JaeG]

So 8 full size hens, and 1 serama? ;-) Thank you for the input!

I wouldn't put a tiny bantam with heavy breeds. A peck on the head from a big girl could do some serious damage to a serama.

You could just go with bantams (they are my favourite - so many cute personalities) and they only need 2 square feet each.