Good evening! I have had chickens now for 2 years. I joined BYC when I was researching chicken coops. I had great intentions, I bought 25 chicks and found a friend to give my extras. I was given six chicks from a fellow BYC. I ended up with 23 chickens. The advice given here is correct. I got rid of 2 roos, nature took care of a few. I had some pass away when they started laying. A varmit got 6...... I am giving away 1 roo & 4 hens. I am getting rid of 2 more roos. I will have only one roo at a time, and no more than 15 hens. My coop size is 12 x 8. 4' is the human section, the actual coop is 8 x 8. I have 6 nesting boxes (I should have had a minimum of 8 when I had all my hens), I also have a roost built to the specifications that I got from a Gail Damrow book. They did okay first winter, I heated the coop. I do not heat in my coop any longer. Second most important thing to having the right amount of birds for the size of your coop, is ventilation, made all the difference this year. I put a window in the loft & left it open all winter. Not one bird had frost bite this year! Last year, Sheldon, my roo, had half his comb blackened from frostbite.
My run is a total of 672 feet. It is a good size for all my birds, but not having too many in the coop is one of the most important things to consider for your birds. Pecking was not too much of a problem for me, but the over health of my birds improved with the down-sizing of my flock. They have better living conditions, the coop stays cleaner. The hens just seem to be more content. I wish I had realized this 2 years ago! Enjoy your chickens! Theresa
I am thinking my actual coop size is a tad larger than the 8x8 figure that my DH said it is though.........
