Housing

[Mother of All]

I have two coop a 4x8 and a 9x6 both have runs around them and both runs can run into each other or separated by opening a door. both runs are 6 feet tall and have chicken wire for the tops. the runs are 15x27 and 15x22. that give me 84 sq ' in coops and 735 sq ' in run space I also free range all day every day. The question is how many birds can I keep with out over crowning. will it be save is some roost in the runs scene they are enclosed? Can someone help.

 

[MrChicken207]

At the VERY least, with 4 sq ft inside and 10 outside you could have 23 birds. I wouldn't have any roost outside, because if it rains, it won't be fun, also, racoons do pull birds through the netting.

A better idea would be to have half as many birds, say, ten or 12. you could keep them separate, with a little bit more in the larger coop, (i.e. 6 in the large and 4 in the small). that way they have plenty of space. I'd also provide some shade in the runs if you can.