Bantams and chicken coop size

[hd_darcy]

Okay, so my husband is building a coop for our 7 chickens. We have 6 bantams, and 1 regular size Turken. The coop ix 3 x 8. I want a few more chickens, but would that be getting too cramped for them?? That doesn't count the 5 nesting boxes, and of course he's got a roost in there as well. Does that change anything?? Thanks!

 

[Jx2inNC]

3 x 8 = 24 sq. feet
The "rule"...I've heard...is 3-4 sq. feet per chicken.
So with 7 chickens, that is 21-28 sq. feet.

Sounds like you should be fine.
How many sq. feet do you have for them in a run, etc., if you have one?

 

[Guitartists]

Do they freerange or live just in the coop/run? Mine freerange....so they really only use the coop to sleep/lay eggs. They say 4 sq ft of floor space per bird... a little less if it's bantam. Commercial farms fit them in small cages so that they can barely move....

..... but they live. So it is all about what seems to work best for your birds. If they all get along well, get lots of outside time and there is still plenty of roost space left, then you can probably add some more birds. You only need a couple of nest boxes for a small flock. I have 25 birds right now and they ALL use the same 2 boxes out of 6

 

[hd_darcy]

Thank you!! Unfortunately, we have two cats so they won't be free ranging

I wish they could though!! We're not sure on the size of the run, but our winters are plenty cold, so I imagine they will be "cooped up" a lot? I think it will be a decent sized run though... Wow, 4 feet per bird I hadn't heard that. In reading here in the question place it said 2 - 3 square feet. Hmm...

Thank you for the help! Maybe I can try to get just two more. I'm always afraid if one dies though I'm stuck with a baby without it having another to cuddle with!

If I get three more, that would be okay EXCEPT I have three kids. If one dies, I'm in trouble.. down to two chicks. So, I was going to get 4 more. That way if we lost one, we'd be covered!

We just lost one out of three not long ago, and it was hard trying to find a baby chick the same age as the other two for my son!!!! Fun-fun!

 

[aalbury]

It's square feet, that is quite a small area really ( 4 square feet is a 2x2 foot square). I still always give them much larger areas than the minimum required! According to the Gail Damerow book, 2.5- 3 square feet per bantam is required. That's really pretty small. Smaller than my Dane's baby crate he grew out of.....

You have 24 square foot in the coop. Do they have a run, or does that include it? You may consider adding a run. Your turken is OK with the banties?

 

[hd_darcy]

That will be just of the coop. The run will maybe be 8 x 12? That isn't set in stone yet, unfortunately the size of the coop is. Okay my husband just said the coop is 7 x 3 feet, but that doesn't include the 5 nest boxes. GRR.. I think they would be fine during the summer with the run as well, but during the winter???

Oh, and so far the Turken is fine with the bantams. They are about 5 1/2 weeks old right now. That was another question. He's our only regular-sized chicken. I'm assuming he will try to breed the bantams??? Or do bantams and regular chickens not breed?? And, I also have three other smaller chicks in a different brooder who our Turken hasn't met but they will all be together some time here.... UGH.. I'm hoping they get along?!

Thank you for all the help!