10X10 coop, how many chickens does that comfortably hold?

tebs78

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12 Years
Jan 1, 2008
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Im building a new coop closer to the house. Trying to decide if I build ramps and perches, how many chickens can I fit in a 10X10 chicken coop?
 
Hello, my name is Mahonri and I am a chickenaholic.

Welcome, Mahonri, we don't judge (much) here. I'm at 50, plus 12 in the incubator. Had 29 at the start of December. ;)

I Kinda dont understand the calculation:
1 person says a chicken need 10 SQUARE feet per bird, another (see above makes the calculation of 10x10/4 = 25 chickens?

thnx


@TumbleGrump you've met the "rule of thumb", gets offered a lot around here, I do it myself. Assuming no special conditions, and assuming typical management practices, and assuming typical clock sizes and mixes (yes, there's a lot of assumptions there, which is why this is a "rule of thumb", not a law of physics), each chicken in your flock needs 4 sq ft of coop space AND 10 sq ft of run space. Within the coop itself, each bird needs 1 sq ft of free ventilation, and approx 1 linear foot of roost space (this is open to much debate).

Likewise, the rule of recommend is one nesting box per four hens, and for consistent breeding purposes, a ratio of one rooster to ten hens. Both of those are far "squishier" recommends, subject to much broader ranges.

All of those are rules of thumb/recommends, subject to specific circumstances which can make broad changes. Some examples -

I've a young rooster covering 20 hens right now, and still seeing 92%+ fertility rates in incubated eggs, but if I needed near 100% fertility, I might go to one rooster per 5 hens.

Banties need less space in the house, 3 sq ft/ is a more common recommend, while particularly large breeds often see 15"/bird or even 18"/bird for roosting space. High intensity management practices can reduce coop space to 2 sq ft/bird. Particularly hot, humid climates can benefit from more free ventilation. Rooster flocks generally recommend between 35 and 50 sq ft/bird in run space, to reduce social frictions. Very large flocks need less space per bird, because they tend to naturally pack together, while very small flocks often need MORE space per bird to make room for feed bowls, water bowls, and nesting boxes...

If your combined run/coop is only for housing overnight as predator protection and a shelter in highly inclement and transitory weather (as opposed to months of deep snows), while they free-range the rest of the day, you cant treat them as a combined space and reduce significantly the total square footage. If your flock has multiple, or different species (as mine does, see sig below), other adjustments need be made.

Essentially, start from the rules of thumb, then adjust for your specific circumstances.
 
Well, we re-homed a roo, and two hens last Thursday.

Tomorrow I get a roo and pullet juvies from Pips & Peeps.. BLUE AMERAUCANAS!!!!

We are only getting 10 or 11 eggs a day and that's not enough from 22 hens (and I only have an 8 X 12 coop)... so, until I get some more little breeding pens built, I'm going to have to figure out which hens are not laying and I'm going to teach the 12 and 14 year old how to process dual purpose birds.

PLUS, I get a bator in the mail on Wednesday and shortly thereafter I'l be getting more Blue Wheaten Ameraucana eggs as well as Cuckoo Marans and Salmon Faverolles. So... I'll have to either re-home some roos or raise them to 4 months and pic which ones I want as breeders.

Hello, my name is Mahonri and I am a chickenaholic.
 
Just do like my neighbor does she uses the sardine method. If the coop door closes there's plenty of room. I have 9 in a 10x10 yard and they have a 4x6 repurposed duck box plus a 4x8 coop outside the yard butted up to the fence. I usually only keep around 6 birds but build my flock up this time of year to sell eggs and bittys. I could put alot more birds in my setup but then it becomes more like work than enjoyment. Sitting here looking out at my yard 20 birds would still be comfortable in my setup but the ocd in me would make the yard bigger.
 
I Kinda dont understand the calculation:
1 person says a chicken need 10 SQUARE feet per bird, another (see above makes the calculation of 10x10/4 = 25 chickens?

I thought that a chicken need 10 square feet PER bird, that means 25 chicken x 10 square feet = 250 square feet. This equals a cage of 15x16 + a coop of 4 square feet per chicken, what is 25 x4 = 100 square feet and makes it 10 x 10 feet.
So for 25 chickens you need a 10x10 feet coop and a 15x16 foot cage. (considering that the chicks are not free ranging) Thats a total of 350 square feet...Right???!

Am I overdoing this, or am i right? Please advice!

My chicks have 20 square feet (200 square feet cage) and 32 square feet coop.
I would save a lot if the 10x10/4 calculation stands....
thnx
The minimum recommendation is 4 square feet, per bird, for the coop, plus 10 square feet, per bird, for the run. Obviously, the bigger the better. There are lots of variables, including free range time, size of birds, and the layout of your coop/run. Your weather will also influence these numbers. If you get a lot of snow and rain, you'll want to make sure to have plenty of dry space for them. Then, you have to take chicken math into account. :D
 
For a non-commercial chicken operation plan on each bird laying 1 egg every other day on average. The industrial large production egg farms get nearly 1 egg each day from every chicken. If u want to pump your birds full of what they give them - then you too can achieve that laying rate.
Breed dependent too. Mine free range with a commercial feeding once daily at 18% protein, free choice oyster shell. Still average about 80% eggs/laying hens. The Comets are good for, essentially, every day. The Rainbows are close to that as well. Falls off a bit for the SLW and Brahma, that's where my numbers really waffle. Even my CornishX manages (almost) 4 days in 5 - THAT was a surprise.

Of course, all my birds are under 1 year in age, and I plan to cull as soon as they go into molt - but that's a management practice to maximize production, not something to do with feed additives.
 

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