New Coop

[hawsecav19d]

I currently have a 3 X 5' by 5' height coop on a 16X4ft run for 6 chickens I plan on going up to 18 chickens by end of setting season. I plan on building a 6 X 8' by 8' high walk in coop, will I need to increase my run length as well and by how much? These will be partial afternoon free range most days they only spend about 1-2 days a week inside the run all day normally during inclement weather.

 

[Judy]

The "rule of thumb," such as it is, says 4 sq ft per chicken in the coop and 10 sq ft per chicken in the run, so that would be 180 sq ft run for 18, whereas you have only 64 sq ft. The thing about this rule of thumb thing is, it is supposed to be the minimum recommended to prevent pecking, feather pulling and, ultimately, cannibalism. Of course, the more space they have, the happier they are. I'm not sure that being free range part of the time will ease the problems when they are locked up. Also, the more space they have, the less work for you. Some people actually only rake out their coop once or twice a year. Here is an excellent discussion about space for chickens:

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

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

The "rule of thumb," such as it is, says 4 sq ft per chicken in the coop and 10 sq ft per chicken in the run, so that would be 180 sq ft run for 18, whereas you have only 64 sq ft. The thing about this rule of thumb thing is, it is supposed to be the minimum recommended to prevent pecking, feather pulling and, ultimately, cannibalism. Of course, the more space they have, the happier they are. I'm not sure that being free range part of the time will ease the problems when they are locked up. Also, the more space they have, the less work for you. Some people actually only rake out their coop once or twice a year. Here is an excellent discussion about space for chickens:

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

X 2

 

[hawsecav19d]

Thanks