Best coop for 4 Chickens

[The Cool Chick]

I just bought my first batch of chicks today and they are three weeks old. There is an overwhelming amount of coops to choose from. Just wanting to see if anyone could recommend a coop for a beginner flock mom!

 

[Lamaremybabies]

I'd say build one if you're able to! Store bought coops usually only last a year or two before things need to be redone or replaced in my experience. Plus you'll probably end up expanding unless you're unable to. I have A small coop from tractor supply at the moment but am almost done with a hoop coop which seems to be a very inexpensive and sturdy design.
Hope these links can be of some help.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/permanent-hoop-coop-guide.47818/

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...se-chicken-coop-up-to-8-chickens?cm_vc=-10005

 

[Dayrel]

@Lamaremybabies is correct. Typical commercial coops use too-thin wood and other cheap materials. I have the one that he links from Tractor Supply and it is a prime example. Another issue is that they greatly overestimate the number of birds that can be reasonably housed. You might want to check this thread for further discussion.

I'd strongly recommend building your own or converting a shed.

 

[Little Chicken Girl]

Welcome to BYC! Glad you're here!

For 4 hens, I would recommend a coop with at least 2 nest boxes.

Depending on the breeds of your chickens, perch needs will vary but you need enough for each hen (with a space for 1 or two more hens to make sure everyone has enough space to move away from the others when they feel the need.)

Keep the design simple so it easy to clean. Fancily decorated coops look cool but are usually not practical long term (unless you have lots of time on your hands).

Chickens need somewhere to run around/exercise/scratch so unless you have the yard for free range/pastured chickens, you will need a run (chicken tractors are really space efficient but again, different things work for different people).

Whatever your set up, make sure the chickens have accessible dust (Chickens need to role in dust to rid themselves of external parasites).

Hope this was helpful! Have fun raising your peeps!

 

[The Cool Chick]

I'd say build one if you're able to! Store bought coops usually only last a year or two before things need to be redone or replaced in my experience. Plus you'll probably end up expanding unless you're unable to. I have A small coop from tractor supply at the moment but am almost done with a hoop coop which seems to be a very inexpensive and sturdy design.
Hope these links can be of some help.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/permanent-hoop-coop-guide.47818/

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...se-chicken-coop-up-to-8-chickens?cm_vc=-10005

Do you like the one from tractor supply? I looked at that one online and thought about buying it.

 

[Lamaremybabies]

Do you like the one from tractor supply? I looked at that one online and thought about buying it.

I have an older model of the coop. And it's about 1-1/2 - 2 years old and it's falling apart. It's a nice coop, easy to clean and use, but very cheap and doesn't last. Plus unless you plan on free ranging it's really not enough space for your chickens to only live in there. I'd buy one of the extensions which are $99 I believe. All in all, if you have a person or two to help you you can buy the stuff and make a simple coop that's much larger for the same or less money.

 

[Lamaremybabies]

Do you like the one from tractor supply? I looked at that one online and thought about buying it.

If you have a little money to spend you could look on the omlet website. They're products are supposed to be amazing.

Here's the link

https://www.omlet.us/shop/chicken_keeping/

 

[aart]

Do you like the one from tractor supply?

Welcome to BYC!
Those are usually too small....and not sturdy long term as already mentioned.
Can depend on your climate.
Bigger is better, you'll want more birds down the road.
But you may have to settle for what you can get fast as your chicks are probably about ready to be off heat and needing more space.

 

[The Cool Chick]

My boyfriend and I have decided on building an A-Frame coop. They seem simple to make and I like that they are easily moved. Will start this weekend. Wish us luck!!

 

[Dayrel]

Good choice. I agree that it is a good design, particularly for small flocks. I'm going to use it for my next coop when the TSC coop breaks down.