How many square feet do I need per hen in my coop

[Farmer Mike S]

I'm building a coop, the coop itself is 16 square feet, not including the 3 external nesting boxes which is 3 square feet. The run is 64 square feet. I have 10 baby hens (5 speckled Sussex and 5 Orpington), I know I'm obviously not keeping all 10, but I need to know how many I should keep. I was thinking 5 chickens, would that work?

 

[DelcoChix]

Bigger is better! The guideline recommendation is 4sf per hen for large fowl, although I have seen some saying 1 1/2-2sf per hen. Personally, I'd go with the 4sf per hen if you can...less picking on each other and more room=happier hens!
Good luck!

 

[speedy2020]

You don't need a lot of room for them to sleep, but you do need about 200-300sq feet run for ten hens. Some breeds are more active than other. With the space you have, 4-5 hens would be fine. If your coop is not too heavy, I would suggest raise about 20-24" above ground so they can have room to hide rain/hot day and keep mouse and rat out.

 

[TipihlowLadies]

From what I gather on some or most posts you can keep 8 hens roosting poles and floor space combined.

 

[1muttsfan]

4 square feet of coop space (10 sq ft of run) per bird is generally considered the minimum for standard fowl. Remember than in bad weather the hens may be stuck inside for long periods, and should have enough room to not be overly crowded.

 

[JaxUnicorn]

4 square feet of coop space (10 sq ft of run) per bird is generally considered the minimum for standard fowl. Remember than in bad weather the hens may be stuck inside for long periods, and should have enough room to not be overly crowded.

Good Morning! Does the square footage include the space under the coop if the coop is raised off the ground so that the hens can easily get underneath? Thanks.

 

[TipihlowLadies]

That space is run space not coop space raised gives shade in the tractor run.

 

[cknkids]

I'm building a coop, the coop itself is 16 square feet, not including the 3 external nesting boxes which is 3 square feet. The run is 64 square feet. I have 10 baby hens (5 speckled Sussex and 5 Orpington), I know I'm obviously not keeping all 10, but I need to know how many I should keep. I was thinking 5 chickens, would that work?

4 square feet of coop space (10 sq ft of run) per bird is generally considered the minimum for standard fowl. Remember than in bad weather the hens may be stuck inside for long periods, and should have enough room to not be overly crowded.

So 16 sq ft is good for 4 hens while the run 64 sq ft is sized for up to 6.4 hens. If your run is covered to allow them out in rain you'd probably get away with 5 as they'll spend most of their time outside. If you think they'll be stuck inside much due to weather you'd be better off going with only 4. Keep and eye on them and you'll know if there are too many. We live in a mild climate and our hens have access to a covered run at all times so the run space is most important. Chicken keeping has lots of variables, so stay flexible.

 

[countrygirl74]

We have about 1 1/2 sq. ft. of coop space for our girls and boys and about 10 sq. ft. of run space. I would definitely go bigger on the coop space if you have long winters, etc. where they would need to stay "cooped" up for long periods of time or there's no covered run space where they could get out in bad weather. I am in Arizona and they spend a LOT of time outside in their run and get supervised free-range time on about a 1/4 acre of space too, which is why I wasn't too worried about my minimum coop space - they only go in there to sleep or to lay and there's still plenty of room. We have very few days that they have to stay in.

Edited to add: The measurements are PER BIRD, not total space, just in case someone got worried there. LOL

 

[CambodiaBruce]

I have three hens with approx. 10 square feet of coop space, not including the external nesting area, and 32 sq. ft. of run including the space under the raised coop. One of the hens is often in a "foul" mood and bullies the others but she was like that before I got her, when she was free range. Other than that they seem to be doing fine.