New Coop and Run Ideas

[MindyNE]

I have 9 new chickens and 3 already so I built a new coop. I would appreciate any suggestions. I included pictures of my old coop for my 3 girls which did really well this winter. I built 4 nesting boxes from an old shelf and will block off about 1-2 feet of the inside of the coop for me to store a few things and gather the eggs. I'm planning on putting a small door on the side and attaching the old run to the new coop but I think I need to make it much larger for 12 chickens. They free range when I'm home but need to be in the run while I'm at work. The new shed is 7 ft by 7 ft but I took blocked off about 1-2 feet of that space.











Any suggestions?

 

[Judy]

Where are you? The answer is different for Georgia and for NY, where they need a place to go during the day when there is a lot of snow cover.

You can add a location to your postbit (just the state is fine) by going to your profile.

 

[MindyNE]

I'm in Nebraska and we do have some nasty winter's. My old coop did really well last winter, but I only had three chickens then. With 12 (possibly 11 because one is probably a rooster) I will need much more space and I'm hoping it's enough.

 

[Judy]

Your new shed might be cutting it a bit close or it might be fine. It looks like your run is covered; if it limits or stops the snow (and perhaps the wind on really windy days) so they can be outside during the day, the :"standard" would say it needs to be a minimum of 120 sq ft for 12 hens. Also, for 12 hens you only need 3 nest boxes. Be sure there is enough ventilation; 12 will put out a lot of humidity and ammonia. You might want to check out the articles in the first two links in my signature line. These were written by a Canadian some years ago and have become a bit of a gold standard here. Also, here is an excellent article on space:

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

Good luck!