Just put our new chickens in their new home... What do you think?

[Chickenbusinessdad]

We just got our first chickens. They need their home. We built our first coop. Used an old dog box. Bought a few items. Managed to get everything made in the USA. Without doing the actual math I think we are about 400 to 500 in all said and done for the coop and run both. This includes hardware, paint, wood, fencing, netting, all of it. Some stuff we had around the house. I am open to suggestions for improvements or criticism. I understand upfront that the number 1 thing people are going to say is bigger. Otherwise let me know

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC. That's a cute little brooder for your babies but you'll need a much larger coop as they grow up.

Using the dog kennel for the run is great -- spacious and sturdy.

Where, in general, are you? Climate matters, particularly when it comes to housing, so if you put your location into your profile people can give you better-targeted advice.

Here's some general information about chickens' space requirements:

The Usual Guidelines

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.

6 hens

• 24 square feet in the coop. 4'x6' is the only really practical build for this given the common dimensions of lumber. If you can't walk into it, put the access door in the middle of the long side to make sure you can reach all areas of the coop because a stubborn chicken WILL press itself into/lay an egg in the back corner where you can't reach.
• 6 feet of roost
• 60 square feet in the run. 6'x10' or 8'x8'.
• 6 square feet of ventilation.
• 2 nest boxes, to give the hens a choice

And an article on why those are guidelines rather than hard and fast rules.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/how-much-room-do-chickens-need.66180/

 

[preciouschick]

We just got our first chickens. They need their home. We built our first coop. Used an old dog box. Bought a few items. Managed to get everything made in the USA. Without doing the actual math I think we are about 400 to 500 in all said and done for the coop and run both. This includes hardware, paint, wood, fencing, netting, all of it. Some stuff we had around the house. I am open to suggestions for improvements or criticism. I understand upfront that the number 1 thing people are going to say is bigger. Otherwise let me know

I really love your dog house conversion. The colors are vibrant like a fire truck. The only criticism i have is that the netting wont keep out climbing predators. In time you could put a roof. Fox and other diggers could dig under the fence. We went all out and dug down our fence 3 ft and put chicken wire down attached to fence with an added measure of barbed wire.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Looks good! The plastic chicken wire might need to be replaced sooner than later. Depending on where you live, digging predators can get through that pretty easily but your coop looks good and secure. The plastic bird netting is the same story but definitely for the foreseeable future and your first time out I think you've done well.

 

[JedJackson]

It looks great, but is it large enough? 3KillerBs has the dimensions needed in that post above. I also agree with preciouschick that more predator proofing is needed.

 

[DobieLover]

I don't see ANY ventilation. That is a MAJOR issue. And the second, third and fourth issues are too small, too small and too small. Just sayin'.

 

[JedJackson]

I don't see ANY ventilation. That is a MAJOR issue. And the second, third and fourth issues are too small, too small and too small. Just sayin'.

Excellent point abour ventilation. That is critical.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Sorry I do see one problem for the amount of birds you have. Assuming you're going to close that coop up every night there is not enough ventilation especially for the number of birds you have. You will need to cut some holes near the roof and cover that with hardware cloth (NOT chicken wire) and a vent near the bottom to move air up. I don't see where your roosts are but they should be below the vents to avoid the chickens sleeping in a draft. My coop was poorly designed in that aspect so I had to put lower roosts in and extra vents.

 

[Chickenbusinessdad]

The box is bigger than it looks while not quite 4x6 it is 4x4.5. For ventilation, there is soffit under each side of the roof just like in a house and just a bit of gap under the metal roofing over the nesting box. I have additional chicken wire fencing. So, should I do ground cover with the chicken wire? Would welded wire fencing work across the top? The nesting box area has 3 separate spaces, I was worried I may need to put another nesting box on the other side, seems I should be ok though. The plan is, if the kiddo and I enjoy the chickens, in a year or two we will turn the 10x12 white shed that is adjoining into the permanent coop. There is a temporary roost inside. I will be updating in the next week or so when I get the roost finished up.

 

[3KillerBs]

For ventilation, there is soffit under each side of the roof just like in a house and just a bit of gap under the metal roofing over the nesting box.

In re: ventilation you need to be thinking square FEET not square inches.

Overcrowding is the one factor most likely to ensure that you won't enjoy your chickens because it causes both behavioral and sanitation problems.

Some people in VERY forgiving climates where chickens have full access to an over-sized run every day of the year without fail can get away with crowding as far as behavior goes, but they still have the sanitation problem of too much poop for the amount of bedding that can go into the undersized space.

With too many birds, little depth of bedding, and inadequate ventilation your coop is going to REEK.