How tall are adult chickens?

[valleychicks]

We are new to keeping chickens and are about to start building our coop and run. We want to put the walk-in coop up off the ground to allow the chickens to go underneath the coop for added run space. So we need to know how tall are adult chickens? We will have Buff Orpington, Cochin, RIR, EE, Silver Laced Wyandotte, Delaware, Dominique, Black and Red Sex Link.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Instead of worrying about how tall the chickens are, think about how high off the ground it needs to be for you to see if a hen is laying eggs under there or maybe if you need to retrieve those eggs. That will make it plenty high enough. Even full sized fowl can get in a 6” high area. They’ll do that to hide a nest.

There are different considerations for how high it needs to be. If it is so low chickens can’t get under there, it becomes a good place for mice or other vermin to set up housekeeping. If the chickens can get in there, that won’t happen. Then it needs to be high enough so you can get access. That may mean using something like a garden rake to reach, but you need to be able to see.

How do you plan on cleaning out the coop? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could put a wheelbarrow under your opening and rake that stuff in there? For a walk-in coop that may not be as important.

 

[jeepguy982001]

rough guess prob about a foot and a half. i made my coop 24 inches of the ground and they have more then enough head room

 

[Hooligans7]

rough guess prob about a foot and a half. i made my coop 24 inches of the ground and they have more then enough head room

I made the underneath run 24 inches high as well. It has worked out great and gives the birds a place to go if they want to stay outside and still be protected. They can always go "upstairs" for food, water, and egg laying.

None of my hens ever have laid an egg in either the high run or low run. They've always used the nest boxes except one time when a hen laid an egg on the coop floor in the straw, and I was able to retrieve it easily. It's possible that all three nest boxes were occupied, so the soft straw floor was the next best place.

For coop cleaning, I park my wheelbarrow in front of the double front doors and use a garden hoe to pull out the soiled straw. It goes directly into my compost.

 

[valleychicks]

Instead of worrying about how tall the chickens are, think about how high off the ground it needs to be for you to see if a hen is laying eggs under there or maybe if you need to retrieve those eggs. That will make it plenty high enough. Even full sized fowl can get in a 6” high area. They’ll do that to hide a nest.

There are different considerations for how high it needs to be. If it is so low chickens can’t get under there, it becomes a good place for mice or other vermin to set up housekeeping. If the chickens can get in there, that won’t happen. Then it needs to be high enough so you can get access. That may mean using something like a garden rake to reach, but you need to be able to see.

How do you plan on cleaning out the coop? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could put a wheelbarrow under your opening and rake that stuff in there? For a walk-in coop that may not be as important.

Well actually, that is what I was talking about. We want to make it off the ground high enough for us to be able to clean the coop and be able to get under the coop if needed. So...that is why I wanted to know how tall adult chickens are to make the area the right size for them and us. We have a little wagon that attaches to our riding mower that we plan to use for cleaning the coop floor instead of a wheelbarrow. We will be able to pull the wagon up to a large access door for cleaning. Thanks for your help!

 

[valleychicks]

I made the underneath run 24 inches high as well. It has worked out great and gives the birds a place to go if they want to stay outside and still be protected. They can always go "upstairs" for food, water, and egg laying.

None of my hens ever have laid an egg in either the high run or low run. They've always used the nest boxes except one time when a hen laid an egg on the coop floor in the straw, and I was able to retrieve it easily. It's possible that all three nest boxes were occupied, so the soft straw floor was the next best place.

For coop cleaning, I park my wheelbarrow in front of the double front doors and use a garden hoe to pull out the soiled straw. It goes directly into my compost.

Thank you! We were thinking about 24 inches or so but wanted another opinion or two.

 

[nelmsy]

Hey guys I was wondering if you could help me.
From a child I have always wanted to have really really tall chickens what is the tallest breed of chickens

 

[Hooligans7]

Hey guys I was wondering if you could help me.
From a child I have always wanted to have really really tall chickens what is the tallest breed of chickens

If you're looking for tall chickens, you might read this thread – https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/120449/what-is-the-tallest-breed-of-chicken