Integration questions/seeking general information

[SelfSufficientMe]

WARNING: Long post

I have six three week old chicks. My broody hen hatched them. They’ve been in their own crate/brooder since the day they hatched with the hen. They soon shared a run with my young pullets. Then the chicks started getting out into the big run. Now they are all out in the big run. I also have seven six week old chicks that have been out with the big girls since four weeks. Cattle panel fencing with biddie wire across the bottom 2 ft. Lol it only works when they don’t have feathers and can’t fly.

Night before last momma hen had the babies in the big coop. Two chicks on top of her and four underneath her at one point. Got there too late with my camera for that pic. When the other big girls came in the chicks and momma hen were knocked off and frantic so I put them all back in the brooder. Last night momma hen laid in the nesting box of the big coop. The chicks were crying for her so I helped them up in the coop/nesting box and they happily slept under her. They’ve been in the coop before so I’m unsure why they were so frantic and unable to figure it out the second night. Anyhow, is this normal chick/hen behavior when graduating from the brooder? Sleeping in the big coop? Seems young.

I opened the coop door around 5am so there would be less of a chance of a scuffle between momma hen and the other hens. It makes me nervous with the babies in there. I have one hen that likes to go after other chickens for no reason. She’s just crazy I guess. Only cross-beaked hen I have. Idk if there’s a correlation. Sometimes I put her in the backyard to keep her away when the others need a break.

I guess the momma feels like it’s safe so maybe I should just let them do their thing. Anybody have experience or advice with this? I plan on giving the chicks away bc I have too many chickens but I’m trying to wait until they are ready to be separated. If I could keep them I wouldn’t really mind it. The momma and chicks are pretty attached at this point, but I know that will change.

My six week pullets have their own coop. They’ve recently been caught roosting in the big coop during the day. Ideally I’d like for all of the chickens to roost in the big coop. Is it possible that they will never want to? No experience with this many chickens at various ages.

Also, just looking for opinions. I have a 22’x42’ (924sq/ft) run and a 8’x4’ coop with roosting bars. Actually it may be 6x4. I’ll have to measure. They could probably roost fifteen full grown hens as of right now. They only sleep in there, but I know there’s a general rule for sq/ft per bird. Three nesting boxes. I plan on adding onto the coop. I know it’s probably too small for eighteen chickens. And I’d need more nesting boxes. As of now only four laying hens. I guess I’m trying to figure out a way/justification to keep the baby chicks Trying to figure out the run sizing situation. Even if I only end up with the twelve, is 924 sq/ft enough? That’s 77 sq ft per hen at twelve and 55sq/ft per hen of I keep all eighteen. My wife won’t let me expand the run. I do let them out in the later part of the day to graze. Our backyard is about 1/2 acre. I have a vegetable garden and flower beds. They have plenty to feed on in addition to their food. The hens have 16% layer crumbles and the chicks have their grower feed although I think all of the chickens have been eating a mix. Kindof hard to keep them separated at this point. Any advice is appreciated. One day I’ll be dishing out the advice

One last thing….almost forgot….
I have an injured six week old pullet. Her brooder mates plucked her feathers out pretty badly at just a few weeks old. She looks like a turken and her injuries were pretty severe at one point. I’m not sure if all of the feathers will grow back, but I do see some starting to show. I’m scared to put her in the run. She’ll probably be killed. I’m trying to figure out if I want to rehome her. Even if I do that, she’ll just be killed by someone else’s chickens. Right now she’s separated and in her own crate. I feel horrible for having her crated alone. I let her out for about an hour a day but she shows no interest in grazing. She wants to just sit by me and chirp. She roosts all day. Eats and drinks fine but is lonely. I’m at a loss for what to do with her at this point. She’s been crated for about three weeks. Thanks again for any words of chicken wisdom

A few pics attached for reference. FYI I added an additional roosting bar that is perpendicular to the originals. I’d also like to add that my injured chick is nowhere near the other chickens because they were pecking at her wound through the crate.

 

[YellowRoseFarm]

Is there any way you can put the injured pullet in her own mini coop next to the larger coop/run so she is still sort of interacting with the other birds but they can't do any more damage? When she is eventually re-introduced, she'll be at the bottom of the pecking order as it is but at least that way she's not a stranger.

The coop may be a bit small but if your birds are free-ranging for any part of the day, the run is probably just fine. 4 sq. ft. (excluding the nesting boxes) is a good rule of thumb for the coop. With 12 birds, you're about 16 ft. shy of a comfortable coop, especially if you have cold winters and your birds want to spend more time in there. It seems the majority will tell you that it's good practice to have at least 1 nesting box per 4 chickens and 12" per bird on the roosts. Others will say you should have 1 nesting box per bird. Somewhere in the middle is where I'd like to be. If you happen to have a particularly broody hen, there goes a box.

 

[3KillerBs]

Also, just looking for opinions. I have a 22’x42’ (924sq/ft) run and a 8’x4’ coop with roosting bars. Actually it may be 6x4. I’ll have to measure. They could probably roost fifteen full grown hens as of right now. They only sleep in there, but I know there’s a general rule for sq/ft per bird. Three nesting boxes. I plan on adding onto the coop. I know it’s probably too small for eighteen chickens.

I'm sorry, but your coop is very much too small -- about 1/3 the size it needs to be.

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

15 hens

• 60 square feet in the coop. 8'x8' is easier to build than 6'x10'
• 15 feet of roost
• 150 square feet in the run. 10'x15', 12'x12' or 8'x20'
• 15 square feet of ventilation.
• 4 nest boxes.

20 hens

• 80 square feet in the coop. 8'x10' is the most practical because 7'x12' or 6'x14' require a lot of weird cuts.
• 20 feet of roost
• 200 square feet in the run. 10'x20', 12'x16' or 8'x25' as suits the land available.
• 20 square feet of ventilation.
• 5 nest boxes.

This is from an article I'm writing:

But I free range/have a huge run and my chickens only use the coop to sleep and lay eggs! Why do I need all that space inside?​

You might not. As I've said, these are guidelines, not hard-and-fast rules.​

If you never close the pop door so that your coop and run function together as a fully integrated system that is the equivalent of a huge, open-air coop, then your flock might be just fine for years, even decades.​

If you are always out there to open the pop door at the crack of dawn or you have an ultra-reliable automatic door so that your chickens never lack access to their free range territory during the daylight hours, then your flock might be just fine for years, even decades.​

If you live in a mild climate where chickens can always go out into their run/range and are never kept in by snow or storms, then your flock might be just fine for decades. People who keep chickens in places with tropical and subtropical climates do successfully go without a coop at all, just offering a covered roost and some nestboxes.​

But when something happens ...​

When a determined predator moves in and breaks through the fencing so that you have to confine the flock to the coop itself so that you can fix the run,​

When an extreme weather event prevents your chickens from leaving shelter for days,​

When an emergency calls you out of town and you can't find someone willing to be there at the crack of dawn to open the pop door,​

Then you could have a mess on your hands.​

Which brings us back to the issue of flexibility and options. Any time you push a system hard against it's limits you have to count on everything remaining stable -- exactly as it is without any changes. How well that's likely to work depends on your specific circumstances. You may never encounter an unfortunate circumstance -- some people DO hit the lottery, after all.​

Given that you are having behavior problems with bullying, you really need to either dramatically expand your space or dramatically reduce your flock.

 

[SelfSufficientMe]

I'm sorry, but your coop is very much too small -- about 1/3 the size it needs to be.

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

15 hens

• 60 square feet in the coop. 8'x8' is easier to build than 6'x10'
• 15 feet of roost
• 150 square feet in the run. 10'x15', 12'x12' or 8'x20'
• 15 square feet of ventilation.
• 4 nest boxes.

20 hens

• 80 square feet in the coop. 8'x10' is the most practical because 7'x12' or 6'x14' require a lot of weird cuts.
• 20 feet of roost
• 200 square feet in the run. 10'x20', 12'x16' or 8'x25' as suits the land available.
• 20 square feet of ventilation.
• 5 nest boxes.

This is from an article I'm writing:

But I free range/have a huge run and my chickens only use the coop to sleep and lay eggs! Why do I need all that space inside?​

You might not. As I've said, these are guidelines, not hard-and-fast rules.​

If you never close the pop door so that your coop and run function together as a fully integrated system that is the equivalent of a huge, open-air coop, then your flock might be just fine for years, even decades.​

If you are always out there to open the pop door at the crack of dawn or you have an ultra-reliable automatic door so that your chickens never lack access to their free range territory during the daylight hours, then your flock might be just fine for years, even decades.​

If you live in a mild climate where chickens can always go out into their run/range and are never kept in by snow or storms, then your flock might be just fine for decades. People who keep chickens in places with tropical and subtropical climates do successfully go without a coop at all, just offering a covered roost and some nestboxes.​

But when something happens ...​

When a determined predator moves in and breaks through the fencing so that you have to confine the flock to the coop itself so that you can fix the run,​

When an extreme weather event prevents your chickens from leaving shelter for days,​

When an emergency calls you out of town and you can't find someone willing to be there at the crack of dawn to open the pop door,​

Then you could have a mess on your hands.​

Which brings us back to the issue of flexibility and options. Any time you push a system hard against it's limits you have to count on everything remaining stable -- exactly as it is without any changes. How well that's likely to work depends on your specific circumstances. You may never encounter an unfortunate circumstance -- some people DO hit the lottery, after all.​

Given that you are having behavior problems with bullying, you really need to either dramatically expand your space or dramatically reduce your flock.

Thank you for your opinion. It sounds like it will be a great article.

I live in central Florida. We have very few days of really cold weather and maybe two days below freezing in a year. It’s definitely hot. And humid. The coop has about a four inch space around the entire top of the coop and two 1’x1’ windows. I actually could knock out a wall to a nesting box and make a door that would go into an enclosed run if need be. Right now their main run is completely open. The enclosed run was specifically for the chicks.

We do have predators. We moved into our new home 11/21 and within a week I saw a fox. Haven’t seen once since though. I almost couldn’t believe my eyes. I’ve lived in Florida my entire life and had never seen one. I know we have coons, coyotes, opossum, snakes, hawks, and osprey. Not to mention cats and dogs. I live in a neighborhood, but the surrounding area is rural. I’ve considered a rooster, but not sure that my neighbors would be happy. I’m allowed to have them bc I live in county.

I have a scarecrow in my run and just put up two owls. I’m hoping that will deter the birds. As for the others, I lock my coop up right at dark and open is right before daylight each and every day. I clip one of their wings to keep them in my fenced in yard. I also put up a motion light. I have a neighbor that has volunteered her live-in teenage granddaughter to take care of chicken duties when we go out of town. We have not yet taken her up on her offer.

I’ll build a larger coop. The one I built was from leftover materials I found in the shed of our new home. I think they were plywood for hurricanes and random leftover cuts. They worked temporarily, but I’d like something bigger and nicer and I’ll be needing more nesting boxes. I’d love an automatic door.

I’ll likely still rehome the chicks. I only hatched them to satisfy my broody hen. It’s easy to become attached though. It was a fun experience. I may keep a rooster pending a talk with my neighbors. It makes me nervous having a newborn soon and a 3 y/o. I heard they can be quite aggressive. Not to mention have a miniature dachshund. She likes to nag/bark the chicks. A rooster would get her for sure. Once they are full grown she doesn’t even notice them anymore Same goes for my lab. She’s only interested in the chicks. Full grown chickens aren’t as appealing I guess.

Thanks again for your advice!

 

[SelfSufficientMe]

Is there any way you can put the injured pullet in her own mini coop next to the larger coop/run so she is still sort of interacting with the other birds but they can't do any more damage? When she is eventually re-introduced, she'll be at the bottom of the pecking order as it is but at least that way she's not a stranger.

The coop may be a bit small but if your birds are free-ranging for any part of the day, the run is probably just fine. 4 sq. ft. (excluding the nesting boxes) is a good rule of thumb for the coop. With 12 birds, you're about 16 ft. shy of a comfortable coop, especially if you have cold winters and your birds want to spend more time in there. It seems the majority will tell you that it's good practice to have at least 1 nesting box per 4 chickens and 12" per bird on the roosts. Others will say you should have 1 nesting box per bird. Somewhere in the middle is where I'd like to be. If you happen to have a particularly broody hen, there goes a box.

Thank you for your advice! I’ll work on a solution for my lonely chick this evening. Maybe I can put up more biddie wire so the chickens can’t access her enclosure and give her space in her own run I do plan to add more nesting boxes when I do a rebuild. New baby due in 2 1/2 weeks. Idk if I can swing it but I can try. At least make some progress. It may come a little later but better late that never at all. I’m definitely not a carpenter, but I’d rather build than buy.