how large should my hen house be??

[jacobchristmas]

we have a small flock of about 14 chickens and 12 guienas. we have orderd 32 baby chicks for next month. right now i have a 4x4x8 building that they use. to me they seem cramped for space. my wife and i will have a total of about 50-60 birds to house how large should it be. they will not be confined to this all the time just at night. they will also have chick run put in later on.

 

[chickenlver2013]

we have a small flock of about 14 chickens and 12 guienas. we have orderd 32 baby chicks for next month. right now i have a 4x4x8 building that they use. to me they seem cramped for space. my wife and i will have a total of about 50-60 birds to house how large should it be. they will not be confined to this all the time just at night. they will also have chick run put in later on.

I have an 8x8. I don't know what proper size should be..

 

[Irishhenman]

what is your climate like or more precisely roughly how many days a year do you have snow or stormy weather.

If you get snow for two weeks or more a year you will need 4 sq feet per bird so you will need 14' x 15' or 15' x 15'

If your climate is mild and you don't get much snow during the year you will be fine with 1.5 sq feet or 2 sq feet per bird so you would need 8x9 or 8x10

With that you will need at least 10sq feet per bird of run space so the run would need to be 20x25 minimum but the bigger the better.

 

[chickenlover122]

It's 4 square feet inside for each chicken (I'm almost sure

 

[LindaB220]

we have a small flock of about 14 chickens and 12 guienas. we have orderd 32 baby chicks for next month. right now i have a 4x4x8 building that they use. to me they seem cramped for space. my wife and i will have a total of about 50-60 birds to house how large should it be. they will not be confined to this all the time just at night. they will also have chick run put in later on.

Hey Jacob,

If they only stay in at night the minimum would be 10' x 12'. I live in the south with no snow so I can free range year round. If you have snow weeks at a time I'd definitely go up to 4-5 sq ft per bird. 15' x 15' or so. Check out deep litter thread and also fermenting feeds thread. There are several and so good.One the long threads I read the first 30 or so then skip to the back 30 pages and start asking questions.

 

[LindaB220]

It's 4 square feet inside for each chicken (I'm almost sure

Hey chickenlover

You are correct for snowy areas. Minimum of 4 sq ft. You will love it here on BYC. People are so willing to help.

 

[chickenlover122]

Thx LindaB220

 

[jacobchristmas]

i live in sc will prob go with 8x12 or a little bigger. would like to have the extra room if needed.