How significant is interior coop height to chickens' welfare

[ChickNhood]

My coop is only about 4ft tall but that because I have kids... I do have to expand on my design thougj cause I just went from 3 to 5 and now thry only have 2 square ft apiece... Im ok for now cause my lil guys can get up on the roasts but my buff nrahma banties are too wide to climb the 1x4 ramp going to roosts

 

[Buckhunter76]

My Coop is 9'L 7'W 7'H with roost attached 8'L 51"W 6'H

 

[Time-Out]

My chickens prefer to roost as high as possible, except for one who has an eyesight problem. I think she can't see the ground if she gets more than a couple of feet up. The others all roost at about 5', maybe more.

Poo doesn't splatter in litter, so that is moot! Plus, think about it this way: the higher it is, the more space you have underneath to put a poop tray.

Back to the original question: the height of the coop doesn't allow you to get away with less square footage. You can't expect them to form a queue to scratch in the litter or to eat. They have to be allowed down on the ground all at once and have the space to do so. It's the same with roost space. You can't say that you need a shorter roost because they have lots of ground space. At night they all roost, and in the day they all scratch and peck.

 

[Xanadu]

Ha ha haaaaa, good one, and true too!

 

[Xanadu]

I was replying to the one about the higher the roost the bigger the splatter.

 

[kynewbchickie]

i built my coop so i could stand up in it for the most part and it is comfortable to me so i spend more time with the girls. i am 6'10 so at the tall point the coop is 8' and it slopes back to 6' so i can stand up in most of it

That's the design we're going with as well. 8' wide x 12' long, sloping ceiling of 8' front to 6' back. Hoping to have the structure up this weekend, if the weather cooperates.

 

[4kids4birds]

Any advice on building coop for 4 birds in a busy subdivision? Is it a good idea to surround my coop with bushes? Does sounds of cars bother them? This is my first day owning my 4 lil sex link chicks... Up comforting the confused black lab pup ... planting a large 12x12 garden between the kid/dog area of backyard and chickens. Any helpful hints and advice about coop building specifically in subdivisions, corner lot would be great!

 

[missnu01]

The height is for the human component of the chicken equation. As long as the chickens have enough room to roost off the floor they're pretty happy whether its 4 ft or 4 inches...

 

[missnu01]

Any advice on building coop for 4 birds in a busy subdivision? Is it a good idea to surround my coop with bushes? Does sounds of cars bother them? This is my first day owning my 4 lil sex link chicks... Up comforting the confused black lab pup ... planting a large 12x12 garden between the kid/dog area of backyard and chickens. Any helpful hints and advice about coop building specifically in subdivisions, corner lot would be great!

Noise doesn't seem to bother my chickens at all. Our rooster hangs out with us when we are using power tools, like chainsaws and never bats an eye... They, like anything else get used to noise... Cars, kids, tools whatever

 

[4kids4birds]

Good to know. Happen to know if these sex link hens I have are going to be noisy??