Big enough coop?

[qopt]

I am raising a flock of 5 barnevelders.
I am wondering if a 3x4 foot henhouse with a 4x9 foot run is big enough.
The chickens will be free ranging, but just in case they have to be locked up we have the 4x9 foot run.

Is my space to chicken ratio accurate? There’s no way for me to make any adjustments to the coop at this point.. so if it isn’t accurate I might have to create a whole new coop.

 

[DobieLover]

Both the coop and the run are too small for 5 LF chickens.

Although some will chime in with 'every situation is unique' (which is very true) there are some bare minimums that should be met regarding personal space (coop and run size and roost space) and ventilation or you will run into trouble. Lots of trouble.
You need a bare minimum of 3 sq feet in the coop.**
You need a bare minimum of 10 sq feet in the run.
More is ALWAYS better.

**Why the double asterisk?? Because this 'rule' can be violated IF your entire run is totally predator proof. Totally predator proof does not mean you have chicken wire walls and a net over the run. That is far from predator proof. The run would need to have a solid roof and the walls enclosed with hardware cloth, all doors with proper latching and a predator apron around the coop and run. There should be no space greater than 1/2" to get into the run or coop. Under these conditions, you don't need to close the pop door between the coop and run and the run is basically now part of the total living space. The coop is used for sleeping and egg laying.

So now that your coop is already built, you could shoot for a run that is closer to 8x10 or 8x12 attached to the coop and make it completely predator proof.

You are in Washington so you will certainly want that solid roof to keep snow from getting in the run.

 

[GC-Raptor]

Barnevelder is a Friendly, active, quiet and lively dual purpose chicken.
Coop is 12 square feet. Pen is 36 square feet.
5 Barnevelders would be cramped. Hopefully the friendly and quiet prevail over the active and lively.

4 square feet per chicken floor space in coop, not including any nests at, near floor level (less than 18").
3 square feet per chicken is doable if pop door is opened at daybreak into a covered run.
10 square feet per chicken of pen size outside of coop for friendly chickens.
My experience with 7 Barred Rocks expanding their pen from 10' x 10' (14.2 square feet per chicken) to 10' x 20' (28.5 square feet) greatly reduced bickering.
Expanding to 10' x 30' 42.8 square feet). I did not notice any improvement after the grass was consumed.
So with my experience 28.5 square feet of pen space per chicken is adequate for all day confinement.

Bantams should be OK with less space. I don't have experience with Bantams.
I do let my chickens free range an hour before sunset daily, weather permitting.

GC
ETA; the Barred Rocks coop is 22.5 square feet of floor space, not including nest boxes.
Waterer takes up about 1.5 square feet so 21' of available floor space.
I had 7 Hens in there, 3 square feet per chicken.
I now have only 5 in the coop 4.2 square feet per chicken.
5 are much happier than 7 when confined to coop during a Blizzard or Noreaster.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Would you want to expand your flock in the future? Your current set up should suffice while your chickens are younger, and that'd give you time to make something bigger. Then the current set up could be used for integration later on, or even to house a few bantams down the line.

If at all possible you want to exceed recommended minimums. No one's chickens have behavioral or health problems from having room to roam, but they sure can crop up more readily when there's insufficient space.

 

[qopt]

Both the coop and the run are too small for 5 LF chickens.

Although some will chime in with 'every situation is unique' (which is very true) there are some bare minimums that should be met regarding personal space (coop and run size and roost space) and ventilation or you will run into trouble. Lots of trouble.
You need a bare minimum of 3 sq feet in the coop.**
You need a bare minimum of 10 sq feet in the run.
More is ALWAYS better.

**Why the double asterisk?? Because this 'rule' can be violated IF your entire run is totally predator proof. Totally predator proof does not mean you have chicken wire walls and a net over the run. That is far from predator proof. The run would need to have a solid roof and the walls enclosed with hardware cloth, all doors with proper latching and a predator apron around the coop and run. There should be no space greater than 1/2" to get into the run or coop. Under these conditions, you don't need to close the pop door between the coop and run and the run is basically now part of the total living space. The coop is used for sleeping and egg laying.

So now that your coop is already built, you could shoot for a run that is closer to 8x10 or 8x12 attached to the coop and make it completely predator proof.

You are in Washington so you will certainly want that solid roof to keep snow from getting in the run.

The run, everything has a solid roof. I used hardware clothe to product the run, and I set up a predator apron. The run while the overall foot print is smaller, has a lot of vertical space. It’s 7 feet tall at the peak. The henhouse has a good amount of vertical space too. I have windows all along the henhouse which can open and close and are also protected with hardware clothe. The chickens will have full time access to the henhouse/run since they’re both connected and I didn’t want to add a door since I want them to be able to get down into the run whenever they want. However the open chicken door is lower while the roost is higher so they’re protected from any wind that might pass by. The birds will be free dancing when it’s safe for them (no signs of hawks, eagles, coyotes.. we have a lot of those here) while building and designing the coop I was told from people who’ve had chickens years longer then me that my design o-kay, and to make sure to make sure to let the chickens free range and have things to do inside the run.

 

[qopt]

Barnevelder is a Friendly, active, quiet and lively dual purpose chicken.
Coop is 12 square feet. Pen is 36 square feet.
5 Barnevelders would be cramped. Hopefully the friendly and quiet prevail over the active and lively.

4 square feet per chicken floor space in coop, not including any nests at, near floor level (less than 18").
3 square feet per chicken is doable if pop door is opened at daybreak into a covered run.
10 square feet per chicken of pen size outside of coop for friendly chickens.
My experience with 7 Barred Rocks expanding their pen from 10' x 10' (14.2 square feet per chicken) to 10' x 20' (28.5 square feet) greatly reduced bickering.
Expanding to 10' x 30' 42.8 square feet). I did not notice any improvement after the grass was consumed.
So with my experience 28.5 square feet of pen space per chicken is adequate for all day confinement.

Bantams should be OK with less space. I don't have experience with Bantams.
I do let my chickens free range an hour before sunset daily, weather permitting.View attachment 2051278View attachment 2051276View attachment 2051280View attachment 2051281
View attachment 2051283View attachment 2051285
GC
ETA; the Barred Rocks coop is 22.5 square feet of floor space, not including nest boxes.
Waterer takes up about 1.5 square feet so 21' of available floor space.
I had 7 Hens in there, 3 square feet per chicken.
I now have only 5 in the coop 4.2 square feet per chicken.
5 are much happier than 7 when confined to coop during a Blizzard or Noreaster.View attachment 2051313

The run a coop are attached. They would never be confided to their henhouse and would have free access to the run at all times. The chickens would be free ranging if it’s safe for them.

 

[rosemarythyme]

The birds will be free dancing when it’s safe for them (no signs of hawks, eagles, coyotes.. we have a lot of those here) while building and designing the coop I was told from people who’ve had chickens years longer then me that my design o-kay, and to make sure to make sure to let the chickens free range and have things to do inside the run.

If you have a lot of predators though, you won't be able to free range a lot of the time, that's the problem. So more often than not they'll be inside the run. An hour of free ranging doesn't make up for being locked up most of the day.

Also with a smaller run it makes it difficult to add things to do inside, as there's not enough floor space for it.

 

[Rooapalooza]

If they are free ranging for all of the day, then that's plenty of space. Are you/somebody else always there to let them in and out? Otherwise unfortunately that is too small. What I would recommend is making a run extension. You are going to need at least the equivalent of two more 4x9 runs to attach to the one you have now. It doesn't really matter how tall they are, except for your own convenience. You also don't need to make them as elaborate as whatever your run looks like now, especially if you can put an automatic door connecting the areas. My own set up is extremely secure for nighttime, but their daytime run is much less secure (it just has netting on the top instead of a real roof, things like that). My daytime run is about 30x10 for 16 chickens. It's too small and crowded for all day, in my opinion, but they free range a lot so it hasn't really mattered yet.

 

[qopt]

If they are free ranging for all of the day, then that's plenty of space. Are you/somebody else always there to let them in and out? Otherwise unfortunately that is too small. What I would recommend is making a run extension. You are going to need at least the equivalent of two more 4x9 runs to attach to the one you have now. It doesn't really matter how tall they are, except for your own convenience. You also don't need to make them as elaborate as whatever your run looks like now, especially if you can put an automatic door connecting the areas. My own set up is extremely secure for nighttime, but their daytime run is much less secure (it just has netting on the top instead of a real roof, things like that). My daytime run is about 30x10 for 16 chickens. It's too small and crowded for all day, in my opinion, but they free range a lot so it hasn't really mattered yet.

Yes, my plan is to have them free ranging. But on off days when a coyote or eagle is spotted I'd want them locked up.. After seeing some of the replies I am going to build a day time run. Their current 4x9 foot run has a cover and is predator proof, they will have constant access to it from their 3x4 foot henhouse. The day time run I am going to build will be much bigger, it won't be exactly predator proof, say against raccoons or opossums, but it will be secure against the main day time predators in my area (coyotes and eagles/hawks).

 

[qopt]

If you have a lot of predators though, you won't be able to free range a lot of the time, that's the problem. So more often than not they'll be inside the run. An hour of free ranging doesn't make up for being locked up most of the day.

Also with a smaller run it makes it difficult to add things to do inside, as there's not enough floor space for it.

After seeing a lot of the replies, I am going to keep my current coop (3x4 foot henhouse, 4x9 foot predator proof run, both attached constant access) and build a day time run that is much bigger, but it won't have a covered roof and instead just some netting, just to keep the chickens safe from hawks/eagles and coyotes. They would only be in any of the runs if predators are spotted, other then that I am planning on free ranging.