Cubic Feet per chicken ??? How many CF do i need

[chfriedmam]

I googled this question and got here. I'm confused by the premise that chickens only occupy 2-dimensional space, as they love to jump up and get on roosts and perch in high corners. It seems like having height in a coop must be good for something. For instance, I feel like a 54 square foot coop that is 6 ft. tall should be able to house more chickens than one that is 3 feet tall. Am I wrong??

 

[CanadaEh]

I'm confused by the premise that chickens only occupy 2-dimensional space, as they love to jump up and get on roosts and perch in high corners. It seems like having height in a coop must be good for something. For instance, I feel like a 54 square foot coop that is 6 ft. tall should be able to house more chickens than one that is 3 feet tall. Am I wrong??

more height is good for:
1) more air in the coop
2) having height to place ventilation above the roosts and nests below the roosts
3) storage, cages

more height does not mean you can fit more chickens because usually they all want to be either on the floor or on the roosts. Your roosts generally at the same height to prevent fighting or pooping on each other and there is only one floor.

 

[chfriedmam]

more height is good for:
1) more air in the coop
2) having height to place ventilation above the roosts and nests below the roosts
3) storage, cages

more height does not mean you can fit more chickens because usually they all want to be either on the floor or on the roosts. Your roosts generally at the same height to prevent fighting or pooping on each other and there is only one floor.

Thanks, that makes sense.

 

[3KillerBs]

more height is good for:
1) more air in the coop
2) having height to place ventilation above the roosts and nests below the roosts
3) storage, cages

more height does not mean you can fit more chickens because usually they all want to be either on the floor or on the roosts. Your roosts generally at the same height to prevent fighting or pooping on each other and there is only one floor.

Well said.

Essentially, chickens don't stack for storage.

Though the use of a poop board under the roost but high enough that chickens can freely walk under it *may* improve the usability of the space.

 

[Sally PB]

Essentially, chickens don't stack for storage.

Though the use of a poop board under the roost but high enough that chickens can freely walk under it *may* improve the usability of the space.

I think of areas of different heights as just places the chickens can explore. They can be up on the poop board, up higher on the roost. Keep in mind that for all of the "up" direction, they have to have as much or more lateral space to hop/glide/fly down.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

and the original post we are responding to is from August, 2009. OP was last on BYC in this post from 2012 after giving away half the flock (23 birds) in 2010. Hopefully, they've got it figured out by now.