are these coops good for Ducks or Quails? or just for chickens?

[jurgen hofman]

Hi All,

total newbie to this,
I only have a small garden, and looking to get some Ducks or chickens or Quails.
Ducks and Chickens would be primarily for eggs, Quails would be eggs and meat.
I found these Coops online and they look great, i asked if they can have ducks in there, and got mixed responses.
https://www.farmfowl.com/product/the-sophie-chicken-coop-with-run/

https://www.farmfowl.com/product/the-emma-chicken-coop-with-run/

Bit of info, I live in Ireland, so we don't have cold winter and no hot summers, very mild all year long. they would come of the coop sometimes, but they need to be inside most of the day as we have 2 terriers.

Many thanks for all your help.

regards
Jurgen

 

[Pyxis]

Ducks don't really like ramps. A ramp like that is probably going to be too steep for the ducks to want to do. For a duck coop, sitting on the ground, not elevated, and with no ramp is best.

Also, those coops are tiny. Even the larger one; they say it'll hold six hens, but it won't. They don't give the actual coop dimensions, but judging from the dimensions of the whole thing, the coop part is probably 3' by 3' - that would fit only two chickens comfortably, three chickens if you really jam them in there. The run, which is 6' by 3', isn't even big enough for two hens.

Also, the trouble with these prefab coops is that they don't last long. They're not made out of good material, so they tend to degrade fast. I wouldn't expect one to last longer than two or three years, really.

All in all it's a better idea to build something yourself - it will last longer, be made of better materials, and you can build it to the proper size that you'll need depending on how many birds you want to keep in it.

 

[JurassicBawk]

Yeah, those coops are tiny. I have no experience with ducks, but have 4 large and 2 small chickens in a 10'x10' chainlink dog pen that I've converted into a coop by predator-proofing the fencing, adding a roof, and putting the chicken house inside. It was cheaper than a prefab coop, I can walk into the coop and hang out with them, and there's 100 sq ft of floor space (plus the inside/top of the house) that they can hang out in instead of being shoved into a little run like those coop links have. A good minimum for house/enclosures is 4 sq ft per bird, and for the run 10 sq ft per bird. That's for standard size chickens, of course bantams are going to take up less room. Mine have over twice what they need and I still wish they had more, but I can't free range them at my house because of predators so they're as safe and happy as I can make them.

If you are wanting quail, look for rabbit hutches more than chicken coops. Quail are nothing like chickens... they don't roost, they don't use ramps (I've had a few use one when I put them in a 2 story rabbit hutch but they didn't like it,) they don't use nest boxes, and they can't be free-ranged. They need at least 1 sq ft of space per quail, not including area taken up by food/water of course, and it's best to keep them with a cage height of 2 foot or less. Having a roof and one side covered for weather protection is good, but they really won't use a fully enclosed area that much. Easy access for you to be able to reach all areas of the hutch, since they don't use nest boxes and eggs go everywhere, is very important. Rabbit hutches do all this well, and I've had quail for 5 years in hutches with virtually no issues.

I keep mine on solid floors with shavings/dirt instead of wire, and use rabbit water bottles which they learn to use very easily. My main hutch is cedar, lightweight, has been outside for 5 years with no issues, and was around $175 at the time. It is one level, but I put wire around the legs and made the area under it into a second condo area, with 4 birds and 6 sq ft of space on each level. I think it's been discontinued as I can't find it anywhere, but something like the link below would be good for around 4 quail on each level.

https://smile.amazon.com/Advantek-T...504020214&sr=1-1&keywords=rabbit+hutch+duplex

 

[jurgen hofman]

Ducks don't really like ramps. A ramp like that is probably going to be too steep for the ducks to want to do. For a duck coop, sitting on the ground, not elevated, and with no ramp is best.

Also, those coops are tiny. Even the larger one; they say it'll hold six hens, but it won't. They don't give the actual coop dimensions, but judging from the dimensions of the whole thing, the coop part is probably 3' by 3' - that would fit only two chickens comfortably, three chickens if you really jam them in there. The run, which is 6' by 3', isn't even big enough for two hens.

Also, the trouble with these prefab coops is that they don't last long. They're not made out of good material, so they tend to degrade fast. I wouldn't expect one to last longer than two or three years, really.

All in all it's a better idea to build something yourself - it will last longer, be made of better materials, and you can build it to the proper size that you'll need depending on how many birds you want to keep in it.

Thanks for that, yeah wasn't planning on having 6 hens in there, maybe 2 or 3 or 2ducks

I will check for making something myself, unfortunately wood and gase are quite expensive in Ireland.

Any easy duck runs on plan here? And small? I only have a small garden

 

[JurassicBawk]

I found this on a quick online search. I do know that ducks usually require more room than chickens, just because they require water access like a kiddie pool or pond.

http://thepoultryguide.com/duck-house-building-plan/

http://thepoultryguide.com/10-duck-house-plans-you-can-build-this-weekend/

From that last link: "Remember, a small duck house is fine for one or two free-ranging birds but more ducks will need space. Ducks need more space than chickens so allow 4-6 square feet per bird in the duck house and 10-25 square feet per bird in the run if they don’t range free."

 

[chickens really]

I have a coop like that and use it for new Ducks...They have no problem going up the ramp....I say bedtime and up they go.....My other Coop is the same design and much larger....Not an issue with ramps here..My Husband made wider ramps with better traction....

 

[DKFarms]

Make sure you take into account an area to keep the kiddie pool too. They must have enough water to dunk their heads into, at least. I'm thinking, personally, that you'll have a better go of things if you choose chickens instead of ducks. Much less room is required for chickens. Our ducks (3) are in 1/3 of our yard, and that seems appropriate for them. Their yard is about 74 feet long, and 20 feet wide.