Help with my run

[Roberts2100]

OK here is my idea. Where the post is for the outside run I want to fence off of it to the back to give them a 30x40ish. Would that be enough for all my 19 chickens now? I would like to add another 18 or so chickens to a total of 38. The total run now is 30x85. Also, it looks like they have scratched all the grass away thought the winter. Is this a sign they need more room for what I have?






Any ideas would be helpful.

 

[MoonShadows]

If you are going to make your run 30x40ish, that means you'll have 1200ish square feet. The more the merrier when it comes to room for the chickens, but 38 chickens would only require about 380 square feet...rule of thumb...10 square feet per chicken in the run. 1200 is going to be like a country club for them.

Chickens will scratch the grass away in a run. It has nothing to do with space.

Jim

 

[JackE]

I would say you need more space. I have 19 chickens in a 100X100' area surrounded by electrified poultry netting. They have been contained in this space for just over a year, and I still have plenty of grass in there. Up by the coop on one side they chewed it down, but for the most part, I have grass in there. 10 square foot per chicken is MINIMUM requirement, go bigger if you can.
Jack

 

[Roberts2100]

Conflicting answers hummmm.....

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

10 Sq Ft per bird is the minimum size.
Whether or not they will destroy all the grass depends on a lot of other factors.
Make it as big as you can, and you can always divide it into sections to allow regrowth

 

[aart]

I would say you need more space. I have 19 chickens in a 100X100' area surrounded by electrified poultry netting. They have been contained in this space for just over a year, and I still have plenty of grass in there. Up by the coop on one side they chewed it down, but for the most part, I have grass in there. 10 square foot per chicken is MINIMUM requirement, go bigger if you can.
Jack

100 * 100 = 10,000 sqft divided by 19 chickens = 526 sqft per chicken!!

Finally, we know how many square feet per chicken to keep our lawns intact!!!

 

[QuietPony]

I think you will always find conflicting advice.
The standard rule that I think everyone agrees on is 10 square feet in a run for each bird.

Perhaps look into making some 'grazing frames' to help maintain grass in the coop, if a lack of it is a concern for you.

 

[joan1708]

Chickens destroy grass! I've looked at pictures of a lot of chicken runs and most of them are grassless if the chickens have been there very long. I think it's just one of downsides of having chickens. They also constantly scratch mulch onto walkways, dig holes, and poop on walkways. My chicken yard always looks messed up and I just have 3 silkies.

The green stuff is Penstemmon. For some reason, they leave that alone. They hang out under the olive tree, but don't pick at it or the Bay tree.

 

[CarolynF]

Yes, you will always get conflicting answers because it's not a black and white situation. If you want grass, the chickens need lots of space. No one can argue with that. The 10 square feet per bird is the minimum recommended to keep the birds from developing "issues" like pecking one another. I think it's safe to say that many people on BYC, including me, don't have sufficient space to fence in an area large enough to keep them in a grassy pasture. But if you do, go for it! I really wish I could do that, I know the birds would be in chicken heaven. My good friend recently let her 12 birds start free ranging in her mother's yard next door. No problem killing the grass because they had LOTS of space. She had tried this in her own backyard a while back and the lawn was destroyed in short order. The difference, of course, was the size of the 2 yards.... large vs small.

I loved the suggestion above about partitioning sections of it off to allow for re-growth. I've seen several articles about doing just that, and how successful it is. I think the best one I saw was a moderate sized enclosure directly outside the coop door that had multiple gates built in. Each gate opened onto a separate section of the really big garden/pasture area. The owner could easily direct the chickens into the desired area. Every few days they would simply have the birds go to a different area so the grass had a chance to recover. It's the same idea as people using tractors that get moved around the yard/pasture.... but without the physical labor of moving the tractor. Love It!

Good luck .... and get used to hearing conflicting answers. With a good sense of humor and your own common sense you'll recognize the answer that's going to work for you.

 

[MoonShadows]

Yes, you will always get conflicting answers because it's not a black and white situation. If you want grass, the chickens need lots of space. No one can argue with that. The 10 square feet per bird is the minimum recommended to keep the birds from developing "issues" like pecking one another. I think it's safe to say that many people on BYC, including me, don't have sufficient space to fence in an area large enough to keep them in a grassy pasture. But if you do, go for it! I really wish I could do that, I know the birds would be in chicken heaven. My good friend recently let her 12 birds start free ranging in her mother's yard next door. No problem killing the grass because they had LOTS of space. She had tried this in her own backyard a while back and the lawn was destroyed in short order. The difference, of course, was the size of the 2 yards.... large vs small.

I loved the suggestion above about partitioning sections of it off to allow for re-growth. I've seen several articles about doing just that, and how successful it is. I think the best one I saw was a moderate sized enclosure directly outside the coop door that had multiple gates built in. Each gate opened onto a separate section of the really big garden/pasture area. The owner could easily direct the chickens into the desired area. Every few days they would simply have the birds go to a different area so the grass had a chance to recover. It's the same idea as people using tractors that get moved around the yard/pasture.... but without the physical labor of moving the tractor. Love It!

Good luck .... and get used to hearing conflicting answers. With a good sense of humor and your own common sense you'll recognize the answer that's going to work for you.