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So, how many chickens does a large turkey equal? My calculations allow 27 birds but 4 are turkeys. 21 is probably on the high limit for my coop, eh? Id be happy with a pair as pets but my wife wont let me butcher the other 2. The hen seems normal but the toms are all very chesty. I hope they arent that breed with oversized breasts. They seem to be able to walk normally so far. I heard there is a special breed to produce extremely large breast meat but at some point the breast is so large they cant walk. Supposed to be butchered before that i guess.

I would really love to range them but my property isnt zoned for livestock so i keep them out of sight and there are too many predators so i just give them as much room as i can afford. I actually bought more than i wanted because i am used to losing a few as they grow. Should have known none would die this time, eh?
 
Getting creative with small spaces makes them more tolerable. Scratch thrown over fresh green hay bedding makes for fun scratching and searching for treats. Going vertical with jungle gym style roosts where the birds can hop from one to the other also creates the illusion of more space for everyone.
 
ShanandGem said:
Getting creative with small spaces makes them more tolerable. Scratch thrown over fresh green hay bedding makes for fun scratching and searching for treats. Going vertical with jungle gym style roosts where the birds can hop from one to the other also creates the illusion of more space for everyone.
Click to expand...
Even something as simple as old wooden saw horse can give them something to play up and move around on. In the winter I've taken to building a table in my coop to set up the feed and waterer on that. gives them a reason to go up there and opens up the floor space more.
 
MeepBeep said:
Most people recommend 5-8 sqft per turkey depending on turkey breed size...
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Since my calculations resulted in enough room for 27 chickens, i have now 17 chickens that leaves 40 sqft so I figure i have room for at least 4 turkeys. Still looks a little crowded though. My toms are huge. I know they are a lot of feathers but they are still huge :-) They wont fit in my butchering funnel for sure so have to do it the old fashioned way, hang them by the feet (Assuming my wife lets me butcher them) I dont even think they will fit in her giant tamale pot for scalding. Thats the biggest thing i have to heat water in. (28-36 qt, its big) Maybe ill just pay someone to process them. A friend of mine uses one when he raises meat birds. I used to clean my own rabbits and pheasants and skin muskrats and coons but havent really got comfortable with chickens yet let alone turkeys. Just ordered a new whole chicken, vertical, electric roaster. (Had one, dissapeared) Going to need something to cook in it :-)
 
Braxton Brigade said:
I am sorry you felt as if they were picking on your coop. That T-11 siding is a great material for building coops/shops! I have a coop build out of the same thing.

I like the style of it as well, I do have one pointer on winter, chickens actually are really hot blooded creatures lol. Their average temp is 105-109 degrees Fahrenheit, usually a group of chickens huddled out of the wind will do just fine during winter.

As long as you don't have opossums, foxes, minks or raccoons in your area they should be alright with the door open. Same for aerial predators, as long as you have something over them they generally should be just fine. I personally used welded wire for one of my past coops, its strong, easy to work with and has small openings. Just a bit of that over their run will keep them safe from nearly all creatures. But, like I said, this is all personal choices. The way you're keeping your birds is 1000% better than factory farms every could.
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Thank you for the info Braxton! I definitely have a few improvements to make but so far so good. They're a happy bunch!
 
Thank you for the input Ed.

I greatly value the experience and know-how of others. I'm not new to forums though and many people don't read the original post, take only certain points out of it, and then when you don't agree with their suggestions, tend to become argumentative. For isntance - I appreciate the specs on size per bird you gave. However, I've read and been personally told much to the contrary. In all of my research I side with the belief (because I've seen this with my own two eyes) that chickens need LESS space than people often think. I have seen them huddle together in VERY small areas of large coops. My own chickens don't utilize anywhere near the amount of space that is available in my "too small" coop. Maybe that's not textbook but that is real. Also, many claim that if your coop is larger the birds don't come out of it as often and then end up with less exercize and are therefore less healthy. Lastly, my buddy down the street has a HUGE coop with 5 nesting boxes (mine has 3) for 7 hens (I have 7 + my boy Dutch). His hen's lay in only 2 of 5 boxes. So far my hens only use 1 box out of 3.

As an example - of which I could find many, here's a 3x4 coop that is suggested for 6-8 hens - and mine is larger than this.
https://www.dutchcrafters.com/Amish-Made-Urban-Cottage-Chicken-Coop-Kit/p/43552

Again, the ammonia is not really a problem for me because I keep my coop clean - probably abnormally so but again...my research is that chickens largely get sick when their in unclean environments.

I will definitely work on the ventilation - had always planned to and I mentioned that in my OP. Was just worried (unnecessarily so, I know) that every hole = colder when it's zero here. I had already resolved to making everything "closeable" with hatches and doors. That said, when I had a small night lamp in their 3x2x2 "coop" inside the house when they were all just chicks the temp never rose beyond about 85 degrees or so at night (I know, should've been 95). Point being, a small heat lamp - not a huge 300watt jobber couldn't possibly raise the temp all that much in 64sqft vs struggling to make it 85 in 12sqft. Now, maybe they don't need it at all (it's just the papa in me that wants to keep em warm) but nevertheless....there's no way I'm overheating that space when it's normally between 0 and 30 here in the winter vs 68 inside my house. Seems like common sense to me - and I have a thermometer to test/prove out that theory. All-in-all I was just looking to take off the cold edge somewhat. I'd also bet I'd find all my hens huddling together under it but time will tell.

As you said, it's a continual work in progress. Thanks again.
 
bigmrg74 said:
Even something as simple as old wooden saw horse can give them something to play up and move around on. In the winter I've taken to building a table in my coop to set up the feed and waterer on that. gives them a reason to go up there and opens up the floor space more.
Click to expand...


That's genius.
 

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