is this enough room?

[phillyfan95]

Hi we will be getting our 7 Buff orpington chicks in a few days and are going to buy a coop on tuesday. The coop we are planing on getting is 4x4 and we are currently building a run that is 10x15. They will spend most of the day in the run but will be let out to free range for at least 2 hours a day. so is this enough room?

 

[DraigAthar]

I read that you want 4 sq ft of coop space per bird for standard breeds and 10 sq ft of run space. 4x4 is 16 sq ft, a little over 2 sq ft per bird so a little cramped. But 10x15 gives them more than 20 sq ft of run space per bird, so it might even out in the end.

Amy

 

[Nicole01]

Your run is plenty big. Your coop is not. 4x4 is very small and can house 4 standard chickens. Maybe you can add on to create more space. The nest boxes take up space and if it snows, they will be super cramped.

Our coop is 12x4 for 7 standard and 1 bantam. I have issues with them pecking each other. There is no way they could stay just in the coop all winter, so we covered their run with plastic. Our run is 22x5, which is perfect for my 8 girls. I'm not free ranging right now due to the spring once the leaves grow back on the trees.

 

[phillyfan95]

yeah thats what i was thinking because they wont be in the coop except to sleep. i know people that have very large coops and leave their chickens in the coop for a day sometimes when they go out but im planning on letting them out everyday. plus theres the chance of some being roos so that would take 1 or 2 off the flock size.

 

[phillyfan95]

the coop is 4x4 without the nest boxes they come out of the side but still now that i think of it it is cramped so some will be off to the sale

 

[phillyfan95]

well we bought the coop today its a 4x6 quaker we got it a lillte bigger. in the first post i made a mistake checked the order today and we only ordered six chicks so they should be nice and cumfy when there old enough to move out to thier coop

 

[The Old Whittler]

I had chickens several years ago and didn't remember the chickens spending much time in their house. After building a Chicken Tractor this past summer I've found that they spend a lot of time in it on rainy, windy days and I'll bet they stay in it a bunch this winter. They also spend more time in it than I thought they would on sunny, pretty days. My house is 4x6 like yours and I have 13 RIR's that are 3 months old and so far they're doing fine in that amount of space. When I order my chicks I ordered 10 females and 1 male and was sent 11 females and 2 males. I understand why they sent the extra 2 but I really didn't want that many. I plan on getting rid of one of the roosters but I'm going to try to keep the extra hen. My nesting boxes are also on the outside and not in the 4x6 area.

 

[turbodog]

4 x 6 coop, 10 x 15 run and some free range time each day? I think you'll do fine with the space you have. Keep in mind you may have one or two roos in your batch that you may end up removing, giving the remaining more room.

But then there's always chicken math lurking in the background....sorta like those Allstate "mayhem" commercials....

 

[Fred's Hens]

I assume you are in the southeast PA area, given your screen name. The winters are mild, but long, boring, windy, rainy, snowy days will be a sure bet. It cannot be fun being stuck in a little bitty coop, hunched and bunched up for days at a time. Just sayin'. You want a better life for your birds than something barely better than being a commercial battery hen. I'm sure you'll make plans for some elbow room? If not this winter, in the near future. A winter coop almost always needs to be bigger than we imagine going into it. Best regards.

edit: I see you already ordered the larger size. Very good, very good indeed.

 

[debid]

Your updated order of 4x6 for 6 birds ought to be a good fit.

But now, beware of chicken math.