Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

[GardenNut]

My 4 little ones are doing great so far. Pasty butt seems to have subsided a couple days ago, and their little wing feathers are already almost in inch long! They're flapping around the brooder box, digging in the dirt, etc. I gave them a tiny bit of worms today I found while pulling weeds. They weren't sure what to make of that. I think they had a good day. I still can't tell three of them apart. "Scabby Navel" is a bit fatter than the others. She still has a scabby navel, but she seems fine. Although I do think she's at the bottom of the pecking order.

 

[dyorto]

How many chickens can be in a 6x8 coop?

 

[Jensownzoo]

How many chickens can be in a 6x8 coop?

6 x 8 = 48 sqft

48 sqft minus space for feeder, waterer, nest boxes, etc. equals the usable sqft

Rule of thumb is 4 sqft per bird.

 

[dyorto]

6 x 8 = 48 sqft

48 sqft minus space for feeder, waterer, nest boxes, etc. equals the usable sqft

Rule of thumb is 4 sqft per bird.

Thanks!

 

[dyorto]

I threw a clump of sod in the brooder. They are sacred of it!

 

[lazy gardener]

I threw a clump of sod in the brooder. They are sacred of it!

Give it time, or if you want to speed the process, sprinkle a bit of their crumble on it.

 

[Blooie]

I threw a clump of sod in the brooder. They are sacred of it!

So far....that will change!

 

[Jensownzoo]

I threw a clump of sod in the brooder. They are sacred of it!

Just wait...one will summon up the courage to investigate and then they'll be all over it. Chickens do not like "new" at first...prey species behavior.

 

[ShrekDawg]

How many chickens can be in a 6x8 coop?

6 x 8 = 48 sqft

48 sqft minus space for feeder, waterer, nest boxes, etc. equals the usable sqft

Rule of thumb is 4 sqft per bird.

I was gonna say that beat me to it, been Blooie'd LOL

But yeah, I go by 4 sq ft too. Some people will say 2 is fine but imo nope. Others say (which I never heard until recently) that the 4 sq ft is for leghorn sized birds and bigger dual purpose breeds need even more room but don't know.

I am going to go by 4 sq ft inside the coop and 10 sq ft outside in the run.

But that also ofteb assumes they'll be let out. If they're confined they might need more.

I have 8 22 week old pullets in just a 3x3 coop kit from TSC and 6x12 chainlink dog kennel but the coop is in the middle of it so it's fairly broken up. They have been in there since around 7 weeks so it was fine as chicks but now it is REALLY not big enough. We are hoping to build a much bigger coop and run asap. I was thinking 4x8 coop (actual coop not coop/run combination like you often see advertised) but I may just go 8x8 or buy a prefab shed. There were a couple on sale at Lowe's right now for pretty cheap for the size but that's for do it yourself, installed it's still over 1000 so I was thinking since we'd have to build it ourself anyways we may as well just get the materials and build a better quality one from scratch. I was thinking though I might as well go bigger. 8x8 or 8x12, something like that. My dad initially thought even 4x8 was big but now realizes that we may as well just go bigger partially cause my uncle said it.

Bigger is easier because it means less work for you. Less cleaning, less behavior and health problems, happier birds, etc.

For 4x8 the max is 8 and like I said, for bigger birds that might be a bit tight. I have 1 Barred Rock, 2 Black Australorps, 3 Buff Orpingtons, and 2 Easter Eggers.

For 6x8 I would say no more than 12 and even that could get tight. Some will say though that you can cram 24 birds in there but I would never do it even free ranging.

Also I know you have to calculate for feeder, waterer, and nest box space but honestly personally for me I would put the food and water outside and have nest boxes accessible from outside as well. That frees up a lot of space. You can,also add shelves and vertical space to squeeze more square footage in but I'd still stick to 12-15.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Thanks!