A bit worried about space...

[cblakley0531]

I have 5 chickens. I know that the general rule is 4-5 ft per chicken in the coop and 10 ft in the run, however my dimensions for my coop and run are as follows: Coop - 4' by 4' (about just over 3 ft per chicken) . Run 4' by 10' (about 8 ft per chicken) - will I be okay? It's a mobile/tractor coop with external nexting boxes, if that helps. We were trying to keep from making it way too big to be able to move.

I always appreciate the feedback that I receive here! Thank you!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Depends on the breeds, individuals and things to keep them busy.
All you can do is try and make adjustments if it goes awry.

 

[Yay Chicks!]

Will you be letting them outside of the run at all? If they get to free range some, that would make a difference in the answer.

You can probably get by with the coop dimensions if they are mostly in there just to sleep and lay eggs.

The run is another matter, in my opinion. They need room to stretch their wings, dust bathe, scratch around and just be chickens.

This is my bias, anyway...

Good luck!

 

[cblakley0531]

Depends on the breeds, individuals and things to keep them busy.
All you can do is try and make adjustments if it goes awry.

I have three Australorps, one Silver Laced Wyandotte and one Ameracauna. I heard that the Aussies would be just fine, but I wondered about the other two.

 

[cblakley0531]

Will you be letting them outside of the run at all? If they get to free range some, that would make a difference in the answer.

You can probably get by with the coop dimensions if they are mostly in there just to sleep and lay eggs.

The run is another matter, in my opinion. They need room to stretch their wings, dust bathe, scratch around and just be chickens.

This is my bias, anyway...

Good luck!

Unfortunately, I can't

My husband, two kiddos and I live with my parents and they have two cats that would surely kill them if they free ranged :-( I'm glad that I'm still in the process of our coop building where I can still extend it! Thank you!

 

[Yay Chicks!]

I will say that it's highly unlikely that cats will attack your chickens once they are full grown. There are a couple of neighbor cats that detour through my yard, and although they will watch the chickens at a distance, I think that they know that those birds can do some damage to them!

That being said, if you don't have a well fenced yard there are other predators you might have to concern yourself with.

 

[Ridgerunner]

A tractor is not a fixed coop and run. Those rules don’t apply. Five might be a bit crowded but it should work out. You’ll just have to watch to see how often you need to move it. A lot of that will depend on the rain.

You might think ahead to the winter. Tractors are work but are usually pretty good in the better weather but become a much bigger problem in the winter. You might start thinking how you’ll handle4 that.

 

[cblakley0531]

A tractor is not a fixed coop and run. Those rules don’t apply. Five might be a bit crowded but it should work out. You’ll just have to watch to see how often you need to move it. A lot of that will depend on the rain.

You might think ahead to the winter. Tractors are work but are usually pretty good in the better weather but become a much bigger problem in the winter. You might start thinking how you’ll handle4 that.

What advice would you have for winterizing a tractor coop?

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'd consider building a larger run that the tractor can be connected to. Park the tractor next to it and have a connecting door of some type. Lock them in the tractor at night for additional predator protection and let them roam that larger run in addition to the tractor during the daytime.

Probably cover the tractor run portion to keep snow out and stop wind hitting them so they have that additional room when you have bad weather.

 

[cblakley0531]

Thank you for the suggestions! I will have to see if I can work out a run that is detachable...have you heard of others moving their coops in the winter with snow on the ground or do people seem to keep them stationary during snowy times?