New chick owner

[Walqui]

Hey guys I’m trying this chicken thing I bought 5 chicks they are getting bigger I think my coop is to small for them. not enough room. I need all the advice you could give me.

 

[CluckerFamily]

Welcome to BYC!
The coop is too small. Normally the numbers that the company says will fit, you need to at least cut that number in half. I personally think the numbers only apply to chicks and not full grown chickens.

 

[mowin]

Agree, way to small and no ventilation. Looks like it would house 2 bantams.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to the wonderful world of chickens and to BYC.

Yes, I'm afraid I have to agree. A good rule of thumb -- that a new person has no way of knowing ahead of time -- is that if it looks like a dollhouse it's only suited for keeping toy chickens.

Smart of you to pick up on this right away. Many people don't.

For 5 chickens you will need 20 square feet in the coop and 50 square feet in the run with 5 square feet of permanent -- 24/7/365 -- ventilation (not counting the pop door you close at night or windows that you close in the winter).

If you add your general location to your profile we'll be better able to give you targeted advice, because climate matters, but what you need for a coop is basically a roofed box a minimum of 4 feet wide, 5 feet long, and at least 4 feet high -- because if it's any shorter you can't get the roost above the nestbox and the ventilation over the birds' heads.

If you can go bigger it's good and many people who build non-walk-in coops end up later building walk-in coops for greater human convenience.

Is getting a shed to convert a possibility for you?

Another option would be a hoop coop because they go together quickly.

What level of construction skills do you have?