Okay, ever since I saw this photo, I have been in love with this design. My worry, is that it will not be enough space for my flock of chicks to grow to adulthood in. Right now, we have seven birds; all bantams. I plan on making a tractor for them as well, so this will just be for when we are not at home and for roosting/laying. First, does this look like enough room for seven bantams to call home each night? Also, I am a complete KLUTZ with power and hand tools, and I am afraid this is going to be a disaster if I try to build it myself. This just looks so pretty; like it was made by someone who KNOWS what they are doing! (unlike me) *sigh* I will probably have more questions, but that is enough for now.
Seems a bit small for 7 bantams, but it's hard to tell without measurements. It is VERY cute, but seems to need a bit more ventilation in the coop. Do you know anyone who has some construction experience that can advise you? I would encourage you to try. You'll be surprised at what you can do. The person that built the coop in the pic may not have know what they were doing either, but just had good help
I have bantams and LF. What I have discovered is that they like to huddle in the coop at night and I can not worry so much about them, but for the run, they need space. What I have been reading on this message board is (for large fowl): 4 sq.ft. per bird in the coop, 10 sq. ft. per bird in the run. Now with bantams, you can squish them in, but they still like to walk around. Flapping their wings, flying around, and exploring. But you must do what is best for your situation!!!! The loving homes people give their chickens- oh boy! It is so much better than what the battery hens have, even if it is a small space. Hardware cloth, hardware cloth, hardware cloth---and protect from digging animals with an apron at the base of your run!!! Bottom line: I think you would be disappointed with the run size eventually, unless that is the maximum size you could have.
Quote:True enough. As for size, it was kind-of hard to tell measurements based on the photo. If we assume to privacy fence behind it is 7 feet high (like ours) then that coop is maybe 4' square at the bottom and 4' high at the center beam. The run looks 4' wide by 10' long and maybe 3-4' tall. I agree about ventilation, and I had planned on putting a window in the back with hardware cloth covering it if I went with this design.
Is there any way you can build a larger version of this? Also, I would HIGHLY reccomend giving yourself room to grow even if you're not planning on getting more chicks! If you're anything like me, you won't be able to help yourself. We have had to build a second coop to accomodate the additions to the family! I wish I would have known better... The chicks will be very comfortable, and if you feel like adding more to the group, you can without worrying about having enough room.
The rule of thumb I follow for bantams is a minimum of 2 sq. ft. of housing and 5 sq. ft. of run space for each bird. So with 7 bantam chickens, you would want at least 35 sq. ft of run space, and at least 14 sq. ft. of housing. Of course more is always better, especially with run space. IF the run is 4 x 10, that would be enough space. If the housing is 3 x 4, that would be really tight. If it's 4 x 4, it would be pretty suitable.
