How tall do you need to make a chicken coop?

[NoseyChickens]

I know you need 4sq feet per bird, but how tall does the coop have to be? I have sen some the size of sheds, and some that look only about 2 ft high. Is there a standard? We have a mix of standard and bantam birds and we are debating between a new shed or building a coop. Also we live in the Mojave Desert. It is really hot during the summer but we get really strong winds and can get below freezing in the winter. Would a coop that is open, a warm weather coop, even be an option here? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Help!

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

One thing you may want to consider is the fact that you might want to be able to get into the coop if you have to catch one of the chickens for some reason. I don't know much other than that. We have a chicken tractor that's only a few feet high and it's hard to get the chickens out of it when they run to the other side. We have openings on both sides, but we literally have to get down and crawl into it sometimes to get them out.

 

[mendogurl]

Mine is 8ft tall inside. Why? I am not sure. Sort of seemed right at the time.
Since I am only 5ft 4 in. I really could have gotten away with a much lower roof.
The positive thing is that it's hot where we are, and the height seems to help the ventilation.

 

[mom2chicksandpups]

And I did not mention, one good thing about height is that our chickens seem to like getting as high as possible on the roost (all but my Silkies). Except for the tractor, we can walk into all of my other pens and coops. I like being able to go in myself so I can check on my feathered kids.

 

[sephiroth]

Generally, a good coop design is one where

1: You can reach in easily and clean it, retrieve eggs, birds, etc.
2: Well ventilated.
3: Sturdy and secure from predators and weather.
4: Roomy enough for the birds housed

I personally like the A-frame chicken tractor design. They're easy to build, easy to move, and can fit the criteria above. Also, if you decide to get more birds, you can easily build another tractor and get te birds witout stressing out other members of your flocks by intoducing new birds ever few weeks...

 

[cybercat]

Quote:
Ditto for my coop too. My chickens just got moved in this past Sunday. I was worried because it has been so hot outside. But I guess summer heat will not be a problem. Now I need to worry how to seal it up better for winter.

Coop height depends alot on your design and what you are confortable with. I have seen many smail/ not tall coop that hold a good amount of chickens. These are cleaned from opening the roof or walls. Usually well off the ground to bring the height up. It is all a personal preferance if you want to walk in you coop or clean it from outside instead.

 

[annie3001]

I would make it tall enough to walk in and stand. your height!

 

[babyspice35]

I have an AMAZING book that says all of these country wisdom and says it should be at least 4 feet high so they have room to fly up to a roost.

In my opinion, you should make it taller then you are so you don't get sore back

ALSO I would recommend a coop and a run to be safe.

 

[cmom]

Here are pictures of my coops. They're not pretty but they work. I like to be able to walk in mine. A friend has small coops raised up off the ground that have access. These are old pictures. The coops have been remodeled since these pictures were taken. I added more ventilation and windows. There are windows in the coop that looks like there is none but they happen to be on the other side.

 

[NoseyChickens]

We have them in an older shed right now. I am really leaning toward keeping the new hen house we make large enough to walk into. I like being able to go inside and clean it up daily and take care of everything. My DH thinks a raised coop is the way to go. But we have not had our chickens long and he has been away for work. I think he will change his mind once he deals with the chickens more.

Thank you all for your advice! Much appreciated!