Did I make a mistake getting this coop?

[showjumper_girl2002]

Consider turning the whole thing into a coop: bust out the interior wall of the housing, then run a longer roost bar lengthwise, roof over the remaining slope on top so the roost bar is roofed over. You can also cover up one or two of the walls if wind is an issue. That will fix your coop space issue as well as give you better ventilation.

A run can be as simple as a dog kennel reinforced with hardware cloth or you can fence off an area with your choice of fencing, just make sure to cover up gaps and openings.

That's a great idea!!

 

[aart]

Knowing your climate would help.
Add your location to your profile

 

[showjumper_girl2002]

I'm in Florida. Just updated my profile

 

[andreanar]

Consider turning the whole thing into a coop: bust out the interior wall of the housing, then run a longer roost bar lengthwise, roof over the remaining slope on top so the roost bar is roofed over. You can also cover up one or two of the walls if wind is an issue. That will fix your coop space issue as well as give you better ventilation.

A run can be as simple as a dog kennel reinforced with hardware cloth or you can fence off an area with your choice of fencing, just make sure to cover up gaps and openings.

Just what I was going to suggest! Being in Florida, you don't have the issue of horribly cold winters so to enclose it should be easy! Good luck and post pics!!

 

[marktoo]

General rule of thumb is 4 square feet per bird inside, 10 out. However, there are variables in this, climate, personalities of the hens, free range, etc. It is possible to fudge a bit...maybe. I had 4 Wyandottes in a 9 sq. ft coop for many years never had any problems but they had 300 sq ft of run & the climate is such that they were never coop bound. Good luck!

 

[feather13]

We have the exact same coop. It was fine for the four chicks we initially got, but they outgrew it in months. We kept it though and find it really useful for acclimating new chicks with the rest of the flock. I keep it in a corner of the large, covered dog run we have that's attached to a much larger coop and run. The older chickens also hop up on the coop to get to their roosting areas, so it's kind of nice that it provides another level to our chicken condo If you have a small yard, maybe get a dog run from Craigslist (mine was $40 in excellent condition), cover it, make it predator proof and leave the cute little wooden coop inside with egg boxes and roosting areas. Good luck!

 

[showjumper_girl2002]

Thanks everyone! Now I have some good ideas on how to improve this coop and make it work

Here are some pics of my girls, Nugget and Piper

Growing fast!

Nap time

With their sister, Tilly

 

[andreanar]

Hello to Nugget and Piper from 14 week old Flower!

 

[showjumper_girl2002]

Hello Flower!

 

[showjumper_girl2002]

Ok! So I figured I'd post pics of the stages of improving my coop! 1st step: ventilation! There was literally only one tiny window!

This is a before pic

Next step: lock down against predators!

One of the doors has a handle to slide it open and closed so we had to get creative

Still have more to do. Will post as I go