How many birds can my coop hold? *Pics*

[Meccahens]

I think I read somewhere that 3-5 sq ft per chicken is adequate. Don't know if the size of the chicken matters?

 

[NatJ]

I think I read somewhere that 3-5 sq ft per chicken is adequate. Don't know if the size of the chicken matters?

Yes, size of chicken matters, and so do some other things.

As a general rule of thumb, 4 square feet per chicken in the coop works pretty well.
Bantams (small chickens) are often fine with 2 square feet each.

But that usually assumes the chickens can go out into a bigger run in the daytime (maybe 10 square feet or more per chicken.)

But if the chickens need to stay in the coop all day they may need more space per chicken. This can happen during cold northern winters, during hurricanes or other extreme weather, or if a predator starts killing chickens when they are out of the coop.

If some of the chickens are much younger than others, they may need more space so the little ones can get away from the big ones.

There are a few cases when smaller coops can work, but it is much more common to have problems when chickens live in smaller spaces.