How Many Chicken's Can I Fit In A 6x8 Coop?

[augustmomx2]

We have a 6*8 coop as well and 10 standard size girls. There are 3 roosting poles and we made the top of the nesting boxes flat, so they can sit up there as well. This is our first year/winter with chickens & so far, so good. Their run is around 20*10 ish so they have a fairly large run and I'm thinking about making a "warm spot" outside they can hang-out in. They adore our dog's "shanty" when they are free-ranging the backyard, so I'm thinking about having dh construct something similar in the run.

I completely agree with the others, its dependant on your habits. I live in an urban area and keep my run/coop very clean (everyday maintenance & weekend deep clean). My coop is also steps away from backporch

So that makes it much easier.

 

[felidaet]

Interesting and timely discussion. We have an 8' x 8' coop with all of the floor space open. Nest boxes are on the exterior. The feed bin is mounted to the wall. We have two 8' roosts and just added a dropping board a couple of weeks ago. (It's amazing how much cleaner the coop is now.) Our run is 16' x 20' and completely covered with a roof. We have 17 standard size pullets. They only use the coop for sleeping, egg laying, eating and drinking. All treats are given in the run. We have a lot of rain here but a very limited amount of snow. Sometimes we go several years in a row with no more than 1 or 2 inches of snow all winter. Night time temperatures stay above 25 degrees most of the time. Most winters our coldest temperature is above 10 degrees. There is about 20 sq ft of covered run space for each pullet. We do NOT have a rooster. I have checked the roost many times at night and found that all but 1 or 2 are using one roost. I have about 7' of unused roost space. I have 5 next boxes. I have never seen more than 3 nests occupied at a time.

We are debating if we can add a few more pullets next spring. 4 sq ft per bird says we should only have 16 birds. We are one over that with 17. I know that I should expand the coop before adding more pullets but that may not be financially possible in the spring. I am thinking that I could comfortably drop down to 3 sq ft of coop space since they don't use it much during the day. I will watch them throughout the winter before making a final decision to expand. I like the suggestion that someone made of putting plastic or tarps on the sides of the run to partially enclose it. I think I may use tarps to cover the North side of the run for the winter. This will help keep it drier. I already have some tarps in the garage that I can use.

What I am really hoping will happen is that my kids will finally give in and agree to let me convert their unused outdoor play house into a second coop. It is about 8' x 8'. Other then the difficult task moving it, it will be very easy to convert into a very nice coop. I would probably do it in a weekend. Moving it will take a 3 or 4 helpers with strong backs, a flat bed heavy duty trailer, and four camper jacks to lift it and at least a day to move. At least this time we will not be moving it across town... We only need to move it about 100 feet.

 

[artsyrobin]

Quote:
would love to see pics of it, especially the nestboxes and roosts. Ours is 4 x 8, with a 16 x 20 run, 8 hens and a roobgvh

 

[Rangely]

Just to add to the statistics. 3X8 coop w/10 hens. Hens are all smaller sexlinks (~5lbs). 8ft of roost space, or about 9.5" of roost per bird. One refuses to roost and camps in a nest box. Hens free range during day. They lay and sleep in the coop and occasionally pop in for some lay mash.

Here's a question. Shouldn't we all be talking about cubic feet per bird, not square feet? Obviously, the 6X8 coop of the original poster would be very different if it is 2' tall or 10' tall. that is 96 cubic feet vs. 480 cubic feet for the coop.

 

[Chuntgray]

I think mine is a 6x8 I have 16 chickens. (the coop was built with the thought I would only have 6

) I have 5 nesting boxes along a one wall. ( they use the same one anyways) I have a glass door and two big windows on each end. There is a rosting bar along the nesting boxes and one by each window. I have a hanging feeder, they seem to do fine. They can go into the outside in the inclosed area anytime their water is outside. In the winter I put up a straw tunnel around their door to stop the wind and make some extra shelter for them. That is where I keep the heated water as well. I never had a problem with them pecking eachother. When I am home I let them free range so they can get away from each other for awhile. I have had them for two years. I have never had any get sick, or never had any problems at all. I would not add anymore. This works for me.

 

[Momo]

Nope, folks don't use cubic feet because chickens are ground dwelling birds, which means the extra space above is just extra headroom, not extra living space.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
No, only if a) they are sparrows and need to fly around, or b) you are stacking them

Basically ground-dwelling birds, it's *square* footage that matters.

Shelves, roosts, tables etc will be used a *little* during the daytime but not enough to meaningfully change how many chickens can coexist peacefully in a particular coop.


Pat

 

[thick chick]

What about in the winter months. I live in Michigan .. When and do u let the chickens out. Wont they get bored and beat each other up. I have 6x8 coop with 7 nesting boxes for 9 hens and 1 rooster.please tell me what winte will be like for my birds.. I do worry about them

 

[cade hall]

how many chickens can I put in this coop