Newbie building our coop/choosing a breed

[rgibb]

Hi! We're in central PA and are just finishin our coop. It's 8' x 4' and the roof slopes from 7.5' to 6.5'. We have one window on the from by the door that will open and the barn style split door will be finished with wire and removable wood (open or sealable for cold weather). We will have 4 total nesting boxes 12"x12"x 14" high. We are planning to get 4-6 "Golden Red Pullets" and one rooster from a local hatchery in Amish country. They are to be between 18-20 weeks old and $8/bird. (Image below is neighbors coop that just picked up from same hatchery).

Since it's cold here in the winter months we need recommendations on watering systems. I was interested in the bucket and nipple system but am unsure what the hens are currently using. Will this be an issue?

Also, feed wise I understand "crumbles" is best. I plan to order from online (convenience) but wondered if the hens have been fed mash and I change them to crumbles if that will be an issue? I found a few galvanized feeders. Is it ok for a smaller flock to use a wall mounted large capacity (40lbs of feed) feeder? Or should we use a 16lb capacity hanging galvanized feeder?

Excited to be here! TIA for any help/suggestions

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

They will love the crumbles.

You don't want your feed to get damp, so if you put out too much feed at once if your air is damp that could lead to mold. Moldy food can kill chickens. So I would put out only enough feed to where they can eat it before it turns damp.

You are going to want a watering system that doesn't freeze. They sell heated bases for the galvanized waterers, - read up on BYC a bit- everyone likes different types of waterers for winter.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/newsearch?search=winter+waterers

 

[drumstick diva]

Chickens are Sweet brought up some very good points. As far as nipple waterers - some birds just won't use them and the nipples do freeze up in bad weather.

 

[N F C]

Welcome to BYC!

Thank you for such a complete introduction and the pictures of your coop build.

I've never tried the nipple waterers but with all of Florida's humidity, I know how quickly food can get moldy just from humidity. In the summer, we only fill our 2 5-gallon feeders about 1/3 full so the chickens can eat it before it goes bad. In the winter, we can fill them up more. We have fed our girls both the crumbles and the pellets...ours prefer the crumbles but that's probably a personal choice thing (not one is right and one is wrong). We use plastic feeders and waterers here, again, because of the humidity, galvanized anything doesn't last long.

I believe Golden Red is another name for a red sex link hybrid...you'll get lots of eggs from those girls once they reach that point. I would suggest you get more than 6 of them since you are also picking up a rooster. The recommended ratio of hens to roo are 8-10 hens to 1 rooster. Of course, you don't need a rooster at all to get eggs but if you want one, you'll want to be sure he has enough females around to avoid over-breeding injuries.

Good luck with your new flock. If you have questions, feel free to ask. There's a ton of information here and some very helpful, friendly members.

Thanks for joining us!

 

[rgibb]

Thank you for the feedback! Do you think a 4'x8' coop is large enough for 8hens and 1rooster? We were told to get a rooster since we live in the country to keep the girls calm.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Thank you for the feedback! Do you think a 4'x8' coop is large enough for 8hens and 1rooster? We were told to get a rooster since we live in the country to keep the girls calm.

Yes I think you are fine on square footage but I highly recommend building them an outdoor area right outside the coop that is snow and windproof- kind of a plastic-wrapped and snow-load-rated-roofed area for them to stand about during snowy weather to get out of the coop.

Chickens are not fond of snow and they will peck each other from boredom in the coop if they stay in there during snowy weather with that many of them (or at least there is the chance of it).

It is nice for them to "get out of the house" too on snowy days.

You will love having a run for them - even if you meant to just free range them- because when you go on vacation you can leave them in a secure place where they can get outdoors. Keep in mind that predator-resistant is ONLY 1/2 inch hardware cloth and it must be buried or aproned out at the bottom to deter digging predators, and must have a roof of hardware cloth or roofing to keep the climbers out. Rats and weasels will get in for anything greater than 1/2 inch I have read. Of course if they are closed up in the coop at night that is not an issue.

If you make a run for them that is only for daytime you can go much cheaper than what I described above.

 

[rgibb]

After some research on the Breed Forum I see that the red sex links can have expensive health issues.... We may go with our original plan and get a mixed flock. I am looking for online Hatchery options now but will probably have to order 15. Is there anywhere that you can get a mixed flock that are not peeps? I would assume this could cause issues mixing grown hens with others.

 

[N F C]

After some research on the Breed Forum I see that the red sex links can have expensive health issues.... We may go with our original plan and get a mixed flock. I am looking for online Hatchery options now but will probably have to order 15. Is there anywhere that you can get a mixed flock that are not peeps? I would assume this could cause issues mixing grown hens with others.

You can get started pullets at some of the online hatcheries, those birds will be around 15-20 weeks old. I just checked 2 of them, Murray McMurray and Meyer, and here are the links to their started birds:
https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/juvenile_birds.html
https://www.meyerhatchery.com/productlist.a5w?cat=1028&A5WSessionId=fb08a201ebc84b1796002b992bfbf074

There are probably other hatcheries that have them also, so look around and see what you can find. Hope that helps!

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!