How many can i stuff into my coop??

[silkiechick05]

the coop is 3.5' X 2.5'

the connecting run is 5' X 3.5'

we are talking bantams of course!

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Quote:
The coop is 8.75 square feet(assuming that all useable floor space) an if you use the standard most on here use it will hold 2 max.
The run is 17.5 square feet an using the standard on here its just a little under the 20 square needed for 2.
I say two would do fine in there.

 

[silkiechick05]

.... oh.

I have four....

 

[Keri78]

How hard would it be to extend the run a bit? In my experience with both my standards and of course my banties is that thye love to hundle together anyway inside the hutch when sleeping or for naps. I also have tractors and four banties would do great in my 8 ft. by 4.5 ft. wide run. Blessings, Keri

 

[pacetruckguy]

I built a 3x5 coop with a 5x16 run. I figured on 6 chickens. There are 2 roosts in the coop, but all six chichens are cuddled up on the highest roost. That's six chickens on a 3 foot roost. Everything I read said they each needed a foot. I'm thinking I can add 1 or maybe 2 more chickens no problem. I'm going to hold out with the six at least untill I see some eggs. They were 19 weeks last Friday, so from what I here it could happen within a couple more weeks.

 

[silkiechick05]

It'd be pretty difficult to extend the run because of the way we built the coop.

We are almost done with the coop, so I will post pictures when we are finally done.

 

[elmo]

Keep in mind the more chickens you "stuff" into a given space, the more work for you to keep things clean, and your chances of having a pecking/harrassment problem go up, too.

I find that it's more interesting to watch my chickens when I give them more space than is typically recommended, rather than less. They are more active, and they just seem happier to me, too.

 

[silkiechick05]

Quote:
so you think four is too much... ?

 

[Imp]

I think you are OK with 4 bantams. They don't need as much space as large birds do. Are they allowed to free range at all? That would decrease the space you need. At the end of the day it's up to you, if they are getting along I wouldn't worry about it too much. Might help them keep warm this winter.

Imp

 

[Megs]

assuming they are getting along and no one is being picked on then 4 small bantams should be OK, what breed are they?

i have a few bantam quads (one is even 2 roos 2 hens) in 4'X3' doghouses, which is only 12 sq feet of floor space (then several roosts) with no problems, they do however have 10X10 runs, but i dont think it would matter if the runs were smaller, they all get along and arent to active (the birds in these coops are cochins), i also have several roosts in the runs that they LOVE.