coop for silkies is started any suggestions welcome

[abhaya]

I went to a local hatchery to get some chicks took my son with (big mistake) he talked me into getting some silkie chicks we got 3. 2 died not sure why. the rest of the chicks are fine. Now i need to build a coop and run for silkies. I free range my girls and dont trust the silkies free rangeing I think they would get eaten. I live in the country lots of preditors and silkies would be easy picins. anyway I need to figure out dimentions and what silkies require as I have not raised them before. I am planning on getting 6 more so I will have 7 total. My question is what do they need I know they dont fly so roost need to be low but how big do nesting boxes for silkies need to be? how big a footprint do I need how tall does it need to be as they dont fly. I am thinking a 2 story coop with nesting boxes on top and run below and extending out so they would have shelter when they are out of the coop if they need it.But just not sure about the design and suggestions welcome.

My frame amd floor are done did them this afternoon. I have a 5 foot by 4 foot foot print I am no carpenter so it looks a little rough

I hope it works. My plan is to elevate it onbricks from an old house that we tore down on the property. I have 1 inch thick styrofoam insulation left from another project so I am gonna insulate the coop The roof is gonna be about 6 inches higher on one side than the other so rain will run off to the back away from where the run will be. i have some windows from that house that was torn down and plan to use one for the coop that should give them plenty of light. I think i will leave about an inch or so open at the bottom of the roof overhang for ventalation the roof will over hang on all 4 sides. Still not sure about siding the roof will be tin i have a bunch of it not sure if I want to the the side walls in tin or wood they will be wood inside the insulation. the nest boxes will be out on the sude of the coop so the 4x5 will be all room for them to move around in will this be large enough for 6 silkies? I have not decided on the run yet how big it will be I need to see how much 1/2 inch mesh wire I have I have parts of 2 rolls.

 

[shadowman]

If you're not concerned with being able to walk into the coop, don't waste your resources on the height of the coop. I have 3 silkies in a coop that I keep in our mud porch. The cage is 36'' high, 30'' deep (so it can fit out of the door, so I can take it outside in the spring) and 6 feet long. They don't use the roosts I provided at all, and I had to lower the nesting boxes to almost floor level. I still have room for a couple more birds.
If I had to build it again, I still wouldn't go over the 36'' height. It would just be a waste of space. Use your resources on more floor space.

 

[GrapeChickens]

Our silkies are semi-free range in an acre fenced yard with a coop where they put themselves to bed each night at sundown - We close the coop at night. We have predators too - Hawks, racoons, possums have all been seen inside the fence. Just make sure there are plenty of bushes or other things to hide under. We had just one close call with a hawk when we first got them ... Now they know and will run for cover before we even see or hear the hawks.

We also have 2 basset hounds, several cats, and friends who bring dogs when they visit ... The silkies have no problem putting any & all other critters in their place!

The coop is about 3 feet off the ground for our convenience. The chickens use a ramp to get up inside. Best suggestion - Cover the floor of the coop with the cheapest stick-down floor tiles you can find (about 50 cents each) and make one wall removable. Then use 2-3 inches of sawdust for bedding. It makes cleaning a breeze - Just a dustpan and hand broom.

Our nesting boxes are made of 1" thick lumber about 12" square with 4" high sides set on the floor of the coop - Really more like wooden shoe boxes that a typical nesting box. They mostly sit in the boxes but will sometimes roost on the sides.

BTW - Our silkies love grapes. They come running when we call "chickens want grapes!" We keep a bag of grapes in the freezer, then thaw in room temp water for 5 mins or so. One caution - More than 3-4 grapes per chicken per day makes for very runny poop.

 

[sydney13]

my silkie will roost at most 1 ft off the ground. we made her, her own roost about 7 inches off the ground which she used to sleep in although now she sleeps in the lip of the nest boxes (making the boxes fill up with poop in no time). mine free ranges with my big chickens and she is one of the more alert chickens. most of the time she is dust bathing under bushes so she is pretty safe from hawks, unlike the other hens who spend a lot of time out in the open. i trimmed some of the feathers around her face so that she can see better to watch out for hawks and other animals.

 

[Chicken Chat]

Mine won't roost, at all. They choose to sleep in piles on the floor or in the nest boxes or the lip of the nest boxes. Speaking of nest boxes, I have some at floor level and another set on top of those for my banty cochins. My silkies will only use the lower ones. ( I had all the nest boxes off the floor at first, but the silkies wouldn't use them and were laying eggs on the floor, so I made some to fit under the boxes I had) Never seen them in the higher ones, ever, so keep that in mind when you place yours.