Is my coop/run suitable??

[GodofPecking]

I consider that to be too small for that many chickens, I would increase the space to about 3 times as much.

Chickens can 'fit' but that won't account for stress and health at all. You'll do better if the entire flock is raised together from eggs. Siblings don't fight to work out the pecking order as much as adults put do. You won't be able to add to the flock easily at all. Any newcomer would be 3/4 killed by the stress.

Chickens need enough space to give bullies a wide berth. literally. 15 is far far too many for 4 x 8 x 7.

Adding to that coop with your skills is rather easy though.

 

[TalkALittle]

But if it's the only place for them to stay out of the weather, it's going to be too crowded. Too small of a coop only works if you live someplace with perfect weather year round.

Or if you cover all or a portion of your run. The best investment of my time and money was roofing my run. It tripled my bird's living space because they can use the run even in bad weather.

Last year New England saw record snowfall very late in the winter. My birds were in the run during the blizzard! And when the backyard was still covered in snow at the end of March their run was clear. If they had been confined to their coop that whole winter I'm sure they'd have picked each other bare, not to mention the coop would have been filled with poop! It's also more enjoyable to care for the birds when you can get out of the wind and rain yourself.

 

[benandsarah]

Snow won't ever be an issue here but I def wanna cover some of the run for shade in the summer. It gets really warm here and they will welcome the break from the sun! Thanks for the great tips!

 

[TalkALittle]

If you get substantial rain any time of the year your birds will appreciate a proper roof, even if it only covers a small area near the coop.

If you are looking to just supply shade then consider suspending shade cloth between your run posts. Tractor Supply Co. carries it in various finished sizes and in 6x25' rolls that you can cut to length and add grommets. You'll need to add a few more posts in the middle of the run to support the cloth over large spans. It doesn't block the sun completely but is an affordable way to add shade to a run.

 

[benandsarah]

Thanks for the info. I was going to add a few taller posts in the middle to support my bird netting so they would double up as places to attach the shade materials

 

[GodofPecking]

stop buying shade-cloth, it makes it colder all winter and you can't eat any part of it like with grapevines. Plus, it is too expensive. Find a grapevine, ask the owner, take two 6 foot bits which won't change the overall shape of the vine ( don't make a bit hole in it ) and then but into chopstick size pieces and plant. Review a simple tutorial on grape cuttings propagation for full details. You can find that part.

Shade in summer.

Sun in winter.

Sultanas.

Grapes.

Wine ?

Raisins.

leaves for the exotic dishes and garnish under other dishes.

and it's another chook powered form of food.

 

[GodofPecking]

 

[Silo]

That is one neat coop!

 

[aart]

Agrees 4x8 not enough room for 15.
Wonders how you got 30 feet of roost in there?
Pics of inside?

 

[benandsarah]

Ok so I made some changes to the interior and made things a bit more cozy. Guess I'll be shooting for about 8 full size hens. I down sized the roosting poles so I now have 16 linear feet, I have 4 laying boxes so they can service 2 hens each. Got my bird netting up and my ramp built. Made lots of progress this weekend