One huge coop vs multiple small coops

[AquaEyes]

Let's say I wished to have a mixed flock of roosters and hens of different breeds, kept in a large fenced area (an acre or more) for free-ranging. If I was to make a coop based on a greenhouse frame or hoop house (in a warm climate -- I'm planning to move to VERY south Florida), and had more than enough square footage inside for the number of individuals in the flock, would this work out OK? Would having multiple roosters (with more hens, and please add in your thoughts on an ideal rooster to hen ratio in a mixed flock) in one very large coop for nighttime lock-up work out alright? Or would having multiple smaller coops within the same large fenced-in range area be necessary? If using multiple smaller coops, the flock would still be ranging together during the day. I would not be concerned with breeding -- this would just be for maintaining a flock for eggs (hens) and meat (excess roosters). If I planned to raise hatching eggs, I'd probably want to set up some smaller pens or tractors for controlled breeding. I'm wondering only because of flock behavior. The breeds I'm interested in are Jersey Giants, Ameraucanas and Marans. Please share your thoughts and experiences on this. Thanks.



~Chris

 

[GarlicEater]

Chickens form cliques so yeah, more than one coop for a large mixed flock sounds like a good idea to me.

 

[gryeyes]

I happen to have a large, mixed flock with several roosters. My flock grew in increments, and I built "grow out" coops/pens for them as I added the youngsters. So now I have a Chicken Compound with a couple of large coops and a collection of many smaller coops. The chickens themselves choose which coop in which to roost, and sometimes the "residents" change, as this or that chicken decides it wants to roost/sleep/cohabit with a different group. It's kind of interesting to see who goes where and for how long.

The only real drawbacks to multiple coops are more than one place to gather eggs (but that's also kind of fun) and more than one coop to clean, and far too many feeders and waterers to clean and fill.

 

[AquaEyes]

Quote:
Interesting....I somewhat assumed that within a large group (say, 30-40 chickens) there would be cliques forming. Would these cliques show unacceptable aggression if they all shared one large coop just for nighttime? Or would they just segregate themselves inside? When I think about the "one large coop" option, I think more about something like a big "chicken aviary" than a building with just enough room for them to move around and roost. But then I think like you're saying, that each "clique" would be like a polygynous family, which would do better in its own house.

OK, let's say I had 2 acres fenced in, and in that area, I had a coop for each rooster and his associated hens. If they were let out together, would they return to their respective coops, or just go to which ever was closest at roosting time? That's the one thing that makes me think having multiple coops might be silly -- if they don't know which is theirs and which is their neighbor's. But, I don't know chicken behavior, and this is just a thought in my head (years away from actual chicken-keeping).

I've seen some of the video clips from Fred's Fine Fowl, and he seems to have multiple coops in one range area. During the day, all chickens are out together, and I have seen some squabbles. But I couldn't find anything to say how those cliques work. Is a "clique" a group that was raised together? Do adult chickens move from one clique to another in such a setting? Would it work out best to have multiple small coops for each batch of eggs I hatch out to start my flock? Everyone, feel free to share any and all experiences. Thanks so much.



~Chris

 

[Zanna]

This is my one large coop/tractor that hubby built. It houses 38 +/- laying hens (marans, production reds, WL, ameraucauna, orps, wellies, penedesencas), currently 8 roos (2 of the marans I have been growing out are heading for freezer camp) and a 3 month old flock of 11 Delawares. They get to freerange all daylight hours on 11 acres. I am always incorporating youngsters and I have divisions in the coop with heavy deer netting when introducing the young babies. When they are old enough, I open a small gap so the babies can get in and out, but the older ones can not get into their quarter. When they are big enough I open it up and everyone mixes just fine. I am planning on doing some breeding when I have the right stock and the plan is to build a similar tractor with divisions inside for the breeding so that I can completely separate them from the flock for periods of time. We also installed a pullet close automatic door so if we want to sleep in I don't have to worry about the young roos hasseling the hennies too much. As long as they have enough room to run away it stays fairly peacefull. They hens also get smart about staying up on the roost until that door opens and they can get out of the coop...........

 

[AquaEyes]

Quote:
Yes, that was what I was wondering about when using multiple smaller coops -- more cleaning and maintenance than one large coop. Let's say the "one large coop" was made from a 30' long X 8' wide by 7' high hoop house or greenhouse frame (or larger...I'm just throwing out numbers now). I would provide more than the minimum roosting and nesting sites for the number of chickens inside, and they'd be inside only for safety at night. During the day, the door would be left open, and the flock could range in an acre or two of space. If the flock population was controlled to, say, 5 roosters and 35 hens, and considering the three breeds I mentioned, would there be a serious aggression concern? Is it possible to keep multiple roosters, each with its own harem, within a large coop for nighttime roosting if they can do their own thing during the day with plenty of space for ranging? Or do multiple roosters just plain not "work" within the same nighttime roost?

~Chris

 

[Zanna]

Interesting....I somewhat assumed that within a large group (say, 30-40 chickens) there would be cliques forming. Would these cliques show unacceptable aggression if they all shared one large coop just for nighttime? Or would they just segregate themselves inside? When I think about the "one large coop" option, I think more about something like a big "chicken aviary" than a building with just enough room for them to move around and roost. But then I think like you're saying, that each "clique" would be like a polygynous family, which would do better in its own house.

Mine form their cliques when they are out free ranging, but everyone seems to stay fairly peacefull in the coop. Although, they don't use it for much other than roosting, eating, drinking.......... I free range them year round. I see absolutely no problems or downsides to doing it this way unless you could not free range them daily. Just my experience though.​

 

[AquaEyes]

Quote:
Thanks so much for posting!

Wow, 11 acres, and they all return to that one coop? I wasn't sure how far they could roam and remember where the coop was.

So you divide the one main coop for new babies, but when they're adult, they all mix together...and you have multiple roosters in there. Great, so you're saying one thing I was wondering about is at least possible. I've seen those hoop-houses used for flocks being raised for meat on free-range within a fenced area, sort of like a resting and roosting place where the feed and water was kept, but I also realized that those large mixed flocks were all young and were processed before reaching full sexual maturity. So I was wondering how something like that work with an adult flock. It seems you're doing something similar to what I was thinking about.

Anyone else want to share experiences? I love learning this stuff here. BYC rocks.

 

[AquaEyes]

Quote:
Mine form their cliques when they are out free ranging, but everyone seems to stay fairly peacefull in the coop. Although, they don't use it for much other than roosting, eating, drinking.......... I free range them year round. I see absolutely no problems or downsides to doing it this way unless you could not free range them daily. Just my experience though.

Yes, this is what I was thinking, but I wasn't sure if chickens remained territorial about their coop if they used it only for nighttime. Thanks so much for answering my question on that.

Oh, while I've got you, is their only water source within the coop, or can they drink while they're out ranging during the day? I realize that they're probably eating all day long, but do they remember where to get water, or do you have to have water available for them on their range?

 

[Zanna]

I have two 7 gallon waterers in their coop. This time of year some come back during the day to drink, some prefer to drink out of any mud puddle they can find............. In the summer, they all wander back at different times to drink as needed, they know where the consistent source is. They have 10 acres but rarely wander farther than an acre from their coop.........