How many chickens can this coop hold?

[AnimalsComeFirst]

I now have dimensions... its 4 W x 3 L x 4 1/2 H
How many chickens can this coop hold?
It has 2 nesting boxes that they have to jump up to get too... 2 roosting poles (only 1 in pic), and the waterer and fooddish takes up some room.
It will be for Orpington size chickens.. standard.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Two comfortably, three at the most and I wouldn't recommend it. Especially considering winter and they may spend more time indoors (mostly when it's snowing).

 

[NottinghamChicks]

They say 4sq ft per bird in a coop, so I would say three is your max

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I'd also take the food and water out. Looks like they'd poop on/in it from where they roost. Plus it would give you more room.

 

[AnimalsComeFirst]

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They'd be okay at night with no water or food?
And as of right now, my chickens are disabled, so they don't roost on poles.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Two if locked in for any length of time. If they have a partially covered adjacent area for snowy/wet weather and they go out at dawn every day and only in at dusk to roost you could stretch it to 4 or maybe even 5 but not if they have to stay in there.
I have a 3X14 building with long runs. They're only in there to sleep. I started with 18 juveniles and they took up every inch of the roosts - not ideal. I started selling them off and ended up with 11 hens and 1 rooster by adulthood and it works but they aren't in there except to sleep and lay eggs. Which is the way I set up all my coops but that is my smallest bldg. in sq. ft. per bird.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Chickens don't see at night, so they don't eat/drink or move around unless you have a light on for them, which is unnatural. As long as you let them out first thing in the morning to eat and drink, they'll be fine. Also if you leave the food outside take it in at night. You'll attract all kinds of hungry animals with that outside all night.

 

[AnimalsComeFirst]

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They go out at around 9 AM in the winter and 5 PM at dusk. They stay out all day. My 2 girls right now cuddle together and when they do it looks like there could be room for 5 birds in the coop, if 2 or 3 were on the roosts and maybe a few might sleep in the nesting boxes.

 

[AnimalsComeFirst]

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Ok i will do that tonite.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

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They go out at around 9 AM in the winter and 5 PM at dusk. They stay out all day. My 2 girls right now cuddle together and when they do it looks like there could be room for 5 birds in the coop, if 2 or 3 were on the roosts and maybe a few might sleep in the nesting boxes.

The problem isn't how many can fit in at night when they're snuggling together on the roost. The problem is what happens when it's snowing for days on end and they don't go out of the coop? Then they're beak to butt or butt to butt, etc, for hours or days at a time. It's stressful for them. They may peck at each other. Also because your nest boxes are open, they can view the eggs and may start eating them if they're bored and confined.

Is it possible for you to let them out earlier? It's light here now by 6 AM... er, daylight savings time... now 7 AM. So your birds will be up with nothing to eat until they get let out. That's a lot of time to go without food, considering they're in about 5 PM now. Because it's going to start getting colder they're going to need more food to keep warm.