I just want to say... We were all beginners once (some of us still are)! Mistakes are going to be made, no matter how informed you are on chicken care. Nobody knows everything. Ideally, we will all be learning
always.
Though it does drive me crazy when people get an animal on a whim (not saying that's what you did) without enough research and preparation, finger pointing doesn't help. "You should have done x", well, they didn't, and we can't turn back time. So let's try to help the situation now!
I agree that you can get away with the size of your coop with 11 birds but they are not going to be happy if they're shut in there for any more time than is necessary (just sleeping, basically). And roosting time is when a lot of aggression can come out as the chooks quarrel over who sleeps where, so keep an eye on them in the evening to make sure nobody is being bullied too severely. Some pecking is normal, a bloody comb isn't uncommon, but severe injury is
not normal. Maybe put a camera in there so you can watch from your phone or computer at night, or if you can't do that (trust me, I more than understand money constraintsā we are below the poverty line), spend time watching them get ready for sleep in the evening. See who bullies who, if anyone. How do they prefer to roost? Who likes to sleep next to each other? You can add more roosts if you need to, that's simple. And they don't all need to be high off the ground. A 2x4 on a couple bricks or cinder blocks is good enough. If you have heavier birds they'll appreciate a lower roost.
Nest boxes are pretty easy too. You can build them out of wood, cut a hole in a plastic storage bin (sand the edges so nobody cuts themselves), use a bucket on its side... Be thrifty! Having chickens doesn't need to cost an arm and a leg.
I put this bucket in the run so the girls lower down the pecking order don't have to fight for the nest box in the coop. They have used it a few times now!
General rule of thumb is one nest box per 3-4 birds. They will share but they'll also fight over them.
I ended up taking out the divider because, I mean... Come on now
Now, we have a rather crappy prefab coop. It's advertised for up to 6 birds but honestly it should hold no more than 3 standard sized chickens. We have 5. The thing is, they have a run to spend most of the day in and I also let them out for supervised yard time, so the size of the coop isn't
too much of an issue.
So far. They're starting to quarrel more at bedtime now.
Our run is also pretty small for 5 chickens (7'Ć8') but it works for now. Great for chicks, not so much for grown birds. Yours looks nice and spacious. If they get out daily, that's another reason not to be
too stressed about coop size.
To expand your coop, someone mentioned raising it up and building onto it underneath. I like that idea! In addition you could expand outward. You can look for scrap wood and other materials at hardware stores, construction sites (obviously ask before taking anything), some people put scraps out by the road for free, and you can even sometimes find good stuff at the dump/recycling center. Just keep your eyes open!
I wouldn't necessarily go with the 4sq ft of coop space per bird if they're getting daily outside time. The more time they spend in the coop, the more space they'll need.
