How many chickens could I keep?

[Hannah11]

Hi everyone I'm not sure if this is the right forum but ill try,
I want to keep more chooks! but i don't want over crowding or health issues so far I have 5hens 9chicks 1roo and they are free range but I want more ex battery girls......Im in love with chickens!
the space in their coop is 20"x13" it has two rooms one for sleep and one for indoor play when the weather is bad. I can easily make the other area another bedding area. the property it around 3acres. I just want to know how many chooks i could possibly keep?

any estimates would be welcome thanks

 

[Hannah11]

i forgot to mention that i have an out of use shed (huge) that some of my chooks spend rainy days in although I'm pretty sure they are just plotting how to break into the adjoining glass house where i grow my veges.......

 

[Hannah11]

Not "inches......feet..... Im used to the metric system

 

[hokankai]

That depends on your setup. If you left it they way it is now and the chickens had access to the outdoors you could comfortably fit 30. The rule is 4 sq feet of indoor space if they have access to the outdoors, and 10sq feet of run space.

I would give each chicken 10 sq feet, so you could easily fit 26 chickens in there very comfortably if they were kept in that space all the time.

I wouldn't go over 60, which gives 4 sq ft of space per chicken and is the minimum amount of room they need for indoor only space if both places are made for sleeping.

Oh, and remember that with each chicken you need at least 32cm of roosting space, so that plays a part in the equation as well.

 

[TheJadeChicken]

Dang you have big coop! xD

How big is each room? What type of chickens do you have? How many are Large Fowl? And how many are Bantams?

 

[Hannah11]

Omg 60! hahaha i was thinking 25-30! so i guess i have enough free space...... I have a little problem of wanting to rescue hens from the local battery egg farm, so I'm glad i can get some more! thank you for your general space requirements hokankai!

The rooms are evenly split with a double door i think the 'coop' was an old stable also i have 2bantam hens with their 9bantam chicks though there is a few little roos that i will give away in that bunch of chicks, and one old eng roo bantam and three brown shavers (the ones i want more of) i think maybe in the states you guys call them sexlink?

 

[TheJadeChicken]

Omg 60! hahaha i was thinking 25-30! so i guess i have enough free space...... I have a little problem of wanting to rescue hens from the local battery egg farm, so I'm glad i can get some more! thank you for your general space requirements hokankai!

The rooms are evenly split with a double door i think the 'coop' was an old stable also i have 2bantam hens with their 9bantam chicks though there is a few little roos that i will give away in that bunch of chicks, and one old eng roo bantam and three brown shavers (the ones i want more of) i think maybe in the states you guys call them sexlink?

Are you going to keep the Bantams with Big ones? Or separated from the big ones?

 

[Hannah11]

the big ones are only a bit bigger and because they are in such bad shape from the cruel conditions they are kept in they don't get very big, plus they sadly have to be kept safe from other chickens for a month due to fragility this is what they look like when you get them







so i know that the bantams can hold their own.... plus the battery girl grow into very peaceful friendly hens if you are just kind to them.

 

[Hannah11]

oh i forgot my tiny roo loves protecting the battery girls, even though they are twice his size very funny to watch!

 

[Smoochie]

I just wanted to say it is so wonderful what you are doing.