Chicken math is trying to get me...

[kierstog]

Our coop is only about 18 sq. ft. and the run is about 150 sq. ft. We have 7 hens and 1 rooster right now. I'm dying to add a couple more hens....but I should stop, right?

 

[azygous]

You can only get away with adding more if you have adequate roosting space. That's the bottom line. Some say chickens requires a foot of roost to be comfortable, but it's really more like eighteen inches to account for flapping wings to get up onto the perch. You also need adequate space in front of the perch for dismount so the birds don't brain themselves smashing into a wall when they hop down. They're like a plane landing, needing space to absorb momentum.

You may want to just tear down the small coop and put up one that will be more comfortable for both you and your flock, present and future. You will enjoy having a coop where you can get inside with your birds if you need to handle them.

Don't try adding on. I did that, and it's way more difficult than tearing down and building a new structure. Trust me.

 

[lazy gardener]

Your current coop is big enough for 4 hens. How old are your birds right now? If they are not yet laying, prepare yourself for some major aggressive behavior as they approach laying age. The tighter the housing, the more brutal the aggression will be.

 

[Mrs. K]

Another point, is that we are going into winter. Winter has shorter days and longer nights. Winter can have weather that keep chickens in the coop. One really wants to keep the bare minimum of birds through the winter.

One can cheat a bit during the long days of summer, but now is the time to cull your flock to make it fit your set up.

VERY UGLY behaviors will start up when space and birds do not match. Often times, with new to chicken people, space that was more than enough room for chicks, rapidly becomes not enough space when birds reach full size. Posts will begin, they have been raised together, and always got along, and now they are terrorizing....

Space is important. You can either build bigger, or reduce the flock size. Wishing they would all get along does not work.

Mrs K

 

[aart]

Our coop is only about 18 sq. ft. and the run is about 150 sq. ft. We have 7 hens and 1 rooster right now. I'm dying to add a couple more hens....but I should stop, right?

Yes!!
Maybe even back up a bit.
Chicken math is not just 'addition'...
...but also should include Division, Multiplication and especially Subtraction!!!