Yep, I think the coop is too small for 5. Most of the premade coops over estimate how many birds they will adequately hold. Honestly, the more room the better. Most recommendations of size are 'minimums' and there are a lot of variables, like climate, how much outdoor space they have and how much of the day they are there, and the individual personalities and temperaments of the birds. If you live in a climate that gets very cold then your actual indoor 'coop' space will likely need to be larger as they will spend more time inside. More temperate climates may need less house space as they are outside more. Just like people, they have preferences and 'friends' and others they don't like so much. They need room to get away from each other. If your birds are inside the coop most of the time, like dead of winter then for 5 birds you would need a minimum of 80 square feet, which would be 8' x 10'. Most of the time they are able to be outside much of the year, so the coop could be smaller with more run space, which is what most do. But use the math as a guideline and do what works. It is easier to expand run space than it is to expand coop space. Right now I have 23 birds, two are roos, my coop is 4'x8'x6' with staggered roosts (multiple elevations), I have a completely enclosed run that is 8'x28'x8' attached to the coop and accessible from the coop 24/7, and a large fenced run that is about 100'x100' that they have access to during daylight hours. But I am in Florida, winter is not an issue and they are outside almost all the time except at night. My coop/house is too small by the math, but because I built it to make maximum use of the space it works even with two roos, and the two large run area's make all the difference. If I had to deal with winter snows and below freezing temps, my set up would likely not work for this many birds, I would need a larger coop.
I think the suggestions in the post by apryl29 were good ones. I would use hardware cloth (what is on your run now) rather than chicken wire. Chicken wire is not nearly as secure against predators. Google and look at lots of pictures of coops and you will get ideas. With a little creativity you can likely make what you have work with some additions and modifications, and if you can find some salvage materials to use, perhaps with minimum cost. I would keep predator protection in mind while you change things.
I think the suggestions in the post by apryl29 were good ones. I would use hardware cloth (what is on your run now) rather than chicken wire. Chicken wire is not nearly as secure against predators. Google and look at lots of pictures of coops and you will get ideas. With a little creativity you can likely make what you have work with some additions and modifications, and if you can find some salvage materials to use, perhaps with minimum cost. I would keep predator protection in mind while you change things.
Just seems like there is always something to make better. But it does calm down, and you will get into a routine eventually and it will not seem so involved and time consuming most of the time. But there are moments! I think the absolute worst thing is to think you are 'there' and then have a predator attack and have to rethink everything. Which is why I highly recommend taking that into consideration while building/modifying. It's so much easier to do it right the first time than to re-do it after. And much less heartbreaking.
