coop & run

[jaykuz]

Hi i am new to chickens and i want to keep four of them in my back yard (not free range because both my neighbors have dogs) i saw a coop on the DIY section on the home depot website (pictures below). i was wondering if i could keep four hens inside it during the winter (i live in the middle part of ny state and it gets below 0 at night). on top of that i was wondering if i should put a tin roof over half my run which is going to be 12 ft by 16 ft to keep cool and out of rain and snow. thank you in advance

it looks like this has 4 nest boxes its 4 ft. wide and 3 ft. deep

the inside looks like this

 

[Mr MKK FARMS]

Welcome to BYC!!

 

[jaykuz]

any sugestions as far as the coop

 

[hotrodflash]

I think that coop would work great for 4 hens, I would cut down on the number of nest boxes to 2. That will give you a little more floor space as well. I would add a little more ventilation too. Even though you are in a colder area than I am, my chickens spend time outside even when it is cold, windy and rainy so I bet yours will use the run so a partial cover on it will be great.

 

[redsoxs]

Greetings from Kansas, jaykuz, and

! Great to have you aboard! Good luck to you and your flock - great looking coop! Good luck to you!

 

[redsoxs]

any sugestions as far as the coop

Put a "lip in front of the neset boxes or the hens will just rake out all the nesting material.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! Glad you joined us! Nice coop!

 

[drumstick diva]

Hens do fight over nest boxes, regardless how many there are. They will line up or fight over one nest box even tho all the others are identical. Silly chickens. Two will be plenty. Boxes look kinda big unless you plan to have large fowl. Time spent in them is usually sitting or lying down. Does the plan called for roosting bars - tree branches of the right size are even better.