Coop questions in Mid Michigan

[NatJ]

I have raised chickens for 10 years... Just not in a cold climate ... I had a 3 x6 coop in South Carolina and 6 big hens in it and never an issue ever so I know small coops will work for me.

That's one place where weather makes a difference. With your 6 hens in the small coop: were they locked in it all day and all night, or did they go out into a run during the daytime?

During a Michigan winter, there will probably be weeks and maybe even months in which they do not go outside AT ALL. Even if you open the door, they may choose to stay inside rather than walking on snow and getting cold feet.

So they may genuinely need more space per bird in the coop in Michigan than they did in South Carolina.

Yes, a run with a roof to keep snow out, and a layer of straw or wood chips in it, could entice them outside. Some chickens will come out, some will not--seems to depend on the individual chickens, and varies among different owners. Some people say all their chickens want out every day, some people say theirs won't go out at all. I cannot predict what yours will do, so you may have to adjust plans a bit based on how your birds behave, after you have them.

 

[aart]

I had a 3 x6 coop in South Carolina and 6 big hens in it and never an issue ever so I know small coops will work for me.

Do you plan on having a run that is protected from weather(snow) and predators?
You did ask about differences in Michigan.
Feet of snow on the ground is a big difference, as are frigid temps blown by wicked winds.
Where in MI are you?

 

[tvett62]

Do you plan on having a run that is protected from weather(snow) and predators?
You did ask about differences in Michigan.
Feet of snow on the ground is a big difference, as are frigid temps blown by wicked winds.
Where in MI are you?

Yes our run will be very protected with a sloped roof, heavily wired and very strong tarping over the top and down sides. Two sides of the run area are protected by 6 foot high burms and the ground is sloped for run off in spring.
The area also has trees for wind break. We are in central Michigan, and this winter was easy on us but I can not depend on that. If it gets very cold we also will tarp tops of coops for protection. Yes we are digging down 12 inches and cementing in hardware cloth. Also we are running hardware cloth all around vase of coops and full runs, and 2 layered of chicken wire completely over runs and top plus hardware cloth up the sides 24 inches .... We tend to call it Fort Knox. We had awful predator problems in SC. We never had any problems and we don't expect to here ...

 

[tvett62]

Yes our run will be very protected with a sloped roof, heavily wired and very strong tarping over the top and down sides. Two sides of the run area are protected by 6 foot high burms and the ground is sloped for run off in spring.
The area also has trees for wind break. We are in central Michigan, and this winter was easy on us but I can not depend on that. If it gets very cold we also will tarp tops of coops for protection. Yes we are digging down 12 inches and cementing in hardware cloth. Also we are running hardware cloth all around vase of coops and full runs, and 2 layered of chicken wire completely over runs and top plus hardware cloth up the sides 24 inches .... We tend to call it Fort Knox. We had awful predator problems in SC. We never had any problems and we don't expect to here ...

I meant to say we had awful predators in SC BUT because we protected so we'll we never had a problem at all.