Chicken Shed/Coop Question

[Stacy35]

Hello everyone, I am a new chicken mommy and so excited! My husband and I are converting our old shed into a nice home for the girls. We are replacing the roof and it currently has a loft. We don’t need the loft and I would love the look of it without it. My question is, would this pose a threat for them if they attempted to fly on one of the high beams? I believe the beams are around 7 1/2 feet. I am fine if they use it, just not if they could get hurt! The Shed is 16 x 12 to give you a idea. Thank you!

 

[Ted Brown]

You have to be concerned about getting up and getting down.

Construct a ramp(s) or mount climbing branches or whatever else might suit and be safe.

 

[Aunt Tat]

You have to be concerned about getting up and getting down.

Construct a ramp(s) or mount climbing branches or whatever else might suit and be safe.

That was my thought. We had a neighbor's hen roosting in our shed and she had hopped up to the rafter by hopping up onto the lawn mower handle.

Later, she moved into the garage and figured out a way to get to the top shelves of our garage. AND she seemed to enjoy sitting on the rails of the garage door opener.

We made it so she couldn't get up there.

THEN she discovered an empty cubby hole in a doorless cabinet next to our kitchen drawer that's up about 6 ft. The looked like the Looney Tune Chick, Jr. calculating how to jump up on the recycling container, jump across the opening of that and up into the cubby hole. She stayed there until Christmas, then went back to my neighbor's

 

[3KillerBs]

If you don't want them roosting in the rafters you can put chicken wire up there to block it off without compromising your high ventilation.

It's one of the few legitimate uses for chicken wire.

 

[Alaskan]

As long as there is a safe descent path (I think it is a 45 degree slope) then it is all fine... as long as you are at peace with where the poo will end up.

I had a 6 feet chicken perch for a few years... no injuries, no issues... I just didn't like where the poo ended up.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

would this pose a threat for them if they attempted to fly on one of the high beams? I believe the beams are around 7 1/2 feet. The Shed is 16 x 12 to give you a idea.

What breeds of chickens? Some have more trouble flying than others. That might factor in.

Most chickens like to sleep on the highest point available. And most can fly much better than many people imagine. My full sized fowl have no problems flying up or down from my 5' high roosts. When I was a kid on the farm some of our full sized fowl hens would fly up to a 10' high hay loft to try to hide a nest from us. They'd fly back down. It was my chore to find those nests. As a kid on the farm I saw hens roost in trees higher than 7-1/2 feet. I've read a few posts on here of chickens roosting more than15 feet up on something. It's often bantams when they are that high.

The higher the roost the more clear space you generally want them to have to fly down. With a 16' x 12' that should not be a problem. I've had chickens, mostly hens but also a mature rooster, launch from my 5' high roosts, fly about 8 feet forward, hang a sharp left, fly out of the coop human door, and land in the run. As long as they have some room they do OK.

A good way to inspect or treat your chickens is to take them off the roost at night when it is dark and using a small light. There can be a benefit to having the roosts low enough to pick them off at night.

I don't know what that shed looks like, what intermediate launch points they may have to help them fly up there, anything like that. In my opinion. if they can get themselves up there I'd be OK with it. Others will have different opinions.

 

[Stacy35]

Thanks everyone! Definitely gave me some things to think about and consider! And thank you, so glad I joined.

 

[Stacy35]

That was my thought. We had a neighbor's hen roosting in our shed and she had hopped up to the rafter by hopping up onto the lawn mower handle.

Later, she moved into the garage and figured out a way to get to the top shelves of our garage. AND she seemed to enjoy sitting on the rails of the garage door opener.

We made it so she couldn't get up there.

THEN she discovered an empty cubby hole in a doorless cabinet next to our kitchen drawer that's up about 6 ft. The looked like the Looney Tune Chick, Jr. calculating how to jump up on the recycling container, jump across the opening of that and up into the cubby hole. She stayed there until Christmas, then went back to my neighbor's

Oh my goodness, what a stinker!!

 

[Stacy35]

Hi, welcome to the forum, glad you joined.


What breeds of chickens? Some have more trouble flying than others. That might factor in.

Most chickens like to sleep on the highest point available. And most can fly much better than many people imagine. My full sized fowl have no problems flying up or down from my 5' high roosts. When I was a kid on the farm some of our full sized fowl hens would fly up to a 10' high hay loft to try to hide a nest from us. They'd fly back down. It was my chore to find those nests. As a kid on the farm I saw hens roost in trees higher than 7-1/2 feet. I've read a few posts on here of chickens roosting more than15 feet up on something. It's often bantams when they are that high.

The higher the roost the more clear space you generally want them to have to fly down. With a 16' x 12' that should not be a problem. I've had chickens, mostly hens but also a mature rooster, launch from my 5' high roosts, fly about 8 feet forward, hang a sharp left, fly out of the coop human door, and land in the run. As long as they have some room they do OK.

A good way to inspect or treat your chickens is to take them off the roost at night when it is dark and using a small light. There can be a benefit to having the roosts low enough to pick them off at night.

I don't know what that shed looks like, what intermediate launch points they may have to help them fly up there, anything like that. In my opinion. if they can get themselves up there I'd be OK with it. Others will have different opinions.

I actually have a variety. I have a Black/Jersey Giant all the way down to a few Silkies

 

[Ridgerunner]

Silkies can't fly so you don't have to worry about the getting up there unless you build ramps or ladders or something like that.

The jersey giant brings up another point. Some people worry about really big birds (they don't get much bigger than a Jersey Giant) hurting their legs as they jump down. I've never had a Jersey Giant so I have no experience with them. I don't know how well they can fly up, I don't know how well they can fly down.

This is my opinion. If you feed your larger birds in a way that they are heavy for their breed they are in danger of hurting their legs if they jump. I don't feed my birds to be all that big for their breed. Mine can manage flying down quite well, I've never had a leg injury like that. My flock is also a mix but all of them about the size of a Sussex or Australorp. I don't know how much risk that Jersey Giant would have.