Advice on my setup! Video giving rundown

[Kwest19]

My build is 60 sq ft coop and 440 sq ft run for up to a dozen hens. I free range briefly in the afternoon with supervision, like maybe 15-20 minutes.

My build is 60 sq ft coop and 440 sq ft run for up to a dozen hens. I free range briefly in the afternoon with supervision, like maybe 15-20 minutes.

My run is 144 sq ft (I just ran out with a flash light and tape measure ), so 8 chickens that comes to 18 sq ft per chicken. In your experience do you think 3-5 hours of free range time would be sufficient to avoid bullying in that amount of space? Most days I am able to keep an eye on them for about that long. I just want my girls to be happy lol.

My coop is on the smaller side ( I was only supposed to have 6 chickens ) so it is 3 sq ft per chicken. I'm considering ways to expand it. Or perhaps switching up the roosting space; opening up the floor space by placing the roosts higher up?

Thanks for taking the time to answer all my questions!

 

[rosemarythyme]

My run is 144 sq ft (I just ran out with a flash light and tape measure ), so 8 chickens that comes to 18 sq ft per chicken. In your experience do you think 3-5 hours of free range time would be sufficient to avoid bullying in that amount of space? Most days I am able to keep an eye on them for about that long. I just want my girls to be happy lol.

My coop is on the smaller side ( I was only supposed to have 6 chickens ) so it is 3 sq ft per chicken. I'm considering ways to expand it. Or perhaps switching up the roosting space; opening up the floor space by placing the roosts higher up?

Thanks for taking the time to answer all my questions!

Your run space will probably be enough for the flock you have. I see you have some "stuff" in there, but another piece or two of clutter might help in the future if you find you have bullying issues.

Coop is on the small side, but if you live in an area with moderate climate where the birds aren't going to stay in due to cold conditions, and if you let them out promptly at sunrise, the coop space is probably ok provided you have enough ventilation and roost for the number of birds.

 

[Chicken Adam]

For roosts the minimum recommendation is 12" from wall, and 14-16" horizontally apart. Looks like you're using 2x4s? with narrow side up - are the birds using that without issue so far?

14-16” apart horizontally is forward correct? Now to make the horizontal aspect how many inches in height for difference? Or is this like squares so the diagonal measurement is like the sides?

Also for my research thus far it is recommended for heights of 6”, 12”, 18”, and 24” off the ground or the poop tray. Is 24” the highest recommended height for a roosting perch? Or what is the highest?

 

[rosemarythyme]

14-16” apart horizontally is forward correct? Now to make the horizontal aspect how many inches in height for difference? Or is this like squares so the diagonal measurement is like the sides?

I'd measure straight out horizontally (instead of the hypotenuse), as with most laddered set ups the roosts aren't vertically far apart enough to prevent birds from reaching up or down to harass a bird on a roost that's close to them.

Also for my research thus far it is recommended for heights of 6”, 12”, 18”, and 24” off the ground or the poop tray. Is 24” the highest recommended height for a roosting perch? Or what is the highest?

I don't have poop trays so can't answer on that front. As far as height off the ground sans poop tray, you can go a lot higher than that, though higher you go, the more landing space you need in front of it (and the higher risk of injury from landing, especially if you have heavier breeds). So some folks have roosts that are up 5', 6' or more. My lower roost is maybe 30" up and the higher one is around 40" or so? If I redid them I'd drop them a bit lower as the landing space in front is just enough for them to land without crashing, so there's some close calls.