I can't believe I'm asking a "how big does it need to be question"...

[TinyLittleFarm]

I'm considering pulling my 3 silkies out of the main coop. Everyone is getting along beautifully, but I'd like to have a separate coop for them because it could easily double as a broody coop when I'd like to hatch eggs, and I'd like to get a Silkie roo and hatch some baby silkies. My current roo is a Light Brahma and he is more than happy to mate with the little silkies. He's easily 4 times their size.

Also, as soon as this snow melts the big girls will be free ranging most of the time and I worry about the silkies out in the yard a bit more than I do the other kids.

I know the standard 4 sq feet can't possibly apply to Silkies. I need room for 4 Silkies as well as babies that they might hatch. Maybe 6 babies at a time? idk. I'm going to be building the coop and run myself and I am going to be scrounging for materials. I know bigger is always better, but what would roughly be a good size coop/run for them?

 

[Judy]

The 4 sq ft is really for large fowl, more like 2-3 for Silkies. But that assumes a run is available. Do your Silkies go out in the snow? Or will there be a run for them to use that is protected from snow?

 

[TinyLittleFarm]

I'll be building an attached, covered run and they will probably only be allowed out to free range when I'm in the yard with them. They actually handle the snow better than some of the bigger girls though.

 

[elmo]

I have only bantams, and tiny ones at that (some of them are barely a pound, and the biggest ones are only about 1 3/4 pounds), but I don't go below the 4 square foot per chicken minimum. Sure, a bantam's body is smaller than a standard size hen, but the square footage per bird is not just to hold the chicken's body, it's to accommodate their need for activity and room to move around. I don't know much about the standard breeds, but I can say our bantams are lively and active and certainly use all the space I give them.

The other thing to remember is that the higher the stocking density, the more work for the chicken keeper to keep the housing clean enough for basic health.

 

[rancher hicks]

I say and 8x12 coop with an 8x24 run.

 

[Sorin]

I have 4 standard chickens and 1 bantam and my coop is four foot by five foot an four foot high. They have an attached run of 6 foot by 18 foot and it seems they have plenty of room. They don't have any issues such as pecking or anything like that.

 

[TinyLittleFarm]

Quote:

Well they would certainly have enough room!