Hey all, I just wanted to ask all the chicken experts out there before I go buy more chickens.... how many (large fowl) girls can my coop and run comfortably hold? My coop is 8ft by 8ft, and my run is 18ft by 18ft..... I want everyone to be happy and healthy, no picking or overcrowding. My girls do free range most days also. Thanks in advance! -Peaches
I do not have a large coop, but mine are only in the coop for laying and sleeping. I could not lock my hens in the coop other than over night. I have an 10 x 15 run, but my coop sits in the corner of it. I do have mulitple perches, and a shelter in the run. I have tried different number of chickens and have found that between 8-10 works best. When I add chicks, cause they are little, I can get another 8-12 in there, but come winter, where they might not free range as much or for as long in the day, I need to be back down to the 8-10 head flock. Currently I have a Roo and 9 hens. They do fine. I generally free range most days, but if I need to lock them up for several days, they also do fine. MrsK
Hi and thanks! I am probably going to have about 15-16 hens, no roo's. What do you think? I have multiple "play items" in my run as well as perches and their "greens pit" it is a large hole (5 hens can fit in it) and I fill it with leaves, hay, and grass. Ha ha they have such a ball with it. Any other opinions? thanks guys! (and gals) -Peaches
The green pit sounds like a great idea. My coop and run setup are slightly smaller than yours, and you have a few more birds than I. Hopefully we both hit the mark
Baed on chicken math - you can comfortably fit 16 chickens inside your coop (8x8 = 64sq feet - 64/4 per bird is 16). I have Black Java's, which are fairly big for chickens - and this amount (4sq'/bird) was pretty good this winter when it was too nasty to be outdoors. I wouldn't go any tighter than that if you're in an environment that has cold/rainy/wet seasons. They need the space on those days!
