How flexible is the coop sq. footage per bird?

[patandchickens]

Since you are in a climate where they can go outdoors most of the time (no Canadian winter

) then as long as they have good sized patches of SHADE in the run, I doubt you are running any much more risk of problems at 3 sq ft per hen than you would at 4. The only thing is that, as another poster points out, if problems start, what do you do then?

Just one other comment: 14+ hrs a day of light does help maintain winter egg production in typical breeds (a number of the sexlink lines seem to be so production-bred, though, that they don't need it -- I have 2 ISA Browns that gave me nearly an egg per hen per day all winter with NO supplemental lighting, even though December days up here are NOTHING like 14 hrs long). However I am not so sure about your suggestion that it is 'good for their health'. There are some fairly reasonable reasons to believe that laying all winter is probably NOT in the hens' best interest, healthwise. (Of course if like mine they do it on their own there is nothing you can do about it). So, I would not personally suggest giving supplemental lighting unless you really want a few extra eggs. Mind, there does need to be reasonable natural light in the coop (IMO) but I don't think you need to *supplement* it.

Have fun,

Pat

 

[sharon and ralph]

Hi:
my wife and I are new comers. just wanted to
say you folks are funny ! my wife came home with eight
young ladys. now the fun gets started. we have a 10'
x 20' x 6' high dog pen as our starting point. any in put
would greatly wecome.

 

[lamelde]

The dog kennel will need chicken fencing around the base if you have dogs/other predators - I lost one hen when my female husky tried to pull her through the hole in the fence when she reached through to graze on the greener grass. God bless, but she didn't go to waste - chicken salad was had by all, except the husky.

 

[blingdiva]

I'm new to the chicken world. I just bought a coop that measures 50x46x45 and a small run that measures 45x50. I ordered 1 dominque, 1 orpington 1 easter egger and 5 silkie bantams. Is this enough space for them? Not sure if I can free range b/c the fence in my yard has posts that are spaced apart (I'm worried the chickens will squeeze through to the neighbors yard) Any advice will be appreciated.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Hi, welcome to BYC -- you would have more luck getting your question answered if you post this as a new topic, can I suggest you try that?

I am assuming those measurements are in inches? That's only something around 16 sq ft indoors and 16 sq ft outdoors, 32 sq ft total. If you put 8 chickens in there they would only have 4 square feet TOTAL -- that's not a lot more than factory-farm chickens have.

Could you do it and have the chickens survive? Maybe, depends on your luck. Is it a good idea? IMHO, definitely not. You need a larger coop, and a much much larger run, sorry. Or only 2-3 chickens.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Flintrock]

I live in Texas also, zone 8. I don't think our chickens will be spending much time cooped up. Just one thing I would like to pass along. Good advice from personal experience: 1) Try to include an access door to your manure box. I do not currently have one, but it will be my first revision. My girls poop most while roosting. My box is ideally located, but not easy to remove for cleaning. It has been a pain. Good luck with the new build. Always build on the bigger side, you will be happy you did.

 

[Preservation Acres]

It really depends on your birds. My birds have limited space in their coop, and they still practically sleep on top of each other...all crowded together. They have a large run, and they get lots of free range time, so their coop time is basically sleep time and laying time. They're happy with it, and they have less than 4 sq ft/bird. It's closer to 2 per bird.

 

[rstampa]

I live in Zone 9 and like you in South Texas the winters are mostly mild.
I think the sq ft will be fine where you live. Especially if they have access to the run at their free will. They really only use the coop for sleep and laying eggs.
As far as the roosts in the coop is concern. I don't think they count them as sq. ft. If you are going to have sixteen chickens you just might want to reconsider on the total number. Say around 12-14. It just better to have a little more room then try to squeeze in a couple extra birds.
http://MyPetChickens.com sells chicks, three at a time. With them you don't need to buy 25 at once. They are very friendly and quit knowledgeable. Check out their Web Page.

Something else you might want to think about. If you wanted them to have some free range time you could but up some wirings around the bottom of your fence. Say about 18"-24" from the bottom. Mine aren't much for squeezing in between things either.
Just my thoughts,

Tampa Fl.

 

[sashurlow]

Here is the reason why it make more sense to post a new question instead of adding to an old one. Two out of four posters responded to the original question.
blingdiva... It sounds like you bought a pre-made coop. Pre-made coops seem to advertise "birds that can live in this coop" that make no sense. Can you return it? If not, maybe build a new coop onto the existing one with the original door acting as an inside door into the new coop. There are a few examples of people adding on to an old coop in the coop plans section. This website seems to use 4ft/bird coop space and 10ft/bird for run space.
Good luck
scott

 

[mybakydbabes]

Hi,
I have 16 hens,4 bardrocks,5 buff orp,and 7 road island reds.Here in Arizona you can not openly free range,not much for predidtors
to eat in the desert.
My fenced (double and overhead fenced)chicken run is 18'long/8'wide/6'tall with a coop on 2' legs measuring 8'long/4'wide/4'tall in
the corner of the run with 6 nest boxes hanging on the side w/lids.
Growing up in the midwest as a kid i made spending money cleaning the neighbors chicken house's.My coop was going to be self
cleaning.I started with a 4'x8' pallet floor with 2' 4x4 legs and attached chicken wire on top of pallet,so the droppings fall thru to the
ground.when I built the walls i lined with chicken wire so i could open up 2 side walls on hinges equalling shade and air for summer,
and fully closed for winter.
My girls also make my garden soil.I feed them alfafa hay once a week which they scratch into the soil,I also turn soil continiously
so they have access to nutrients.Along with a mixture of layer pellets,performance granles,oyster shells,ground up egg shells,a feed
mixture called Game Cock Food and food scraps every day ,I'd say they eat pretty good.