pre-fab question

[lpfdco237]

I'm considering a pre-fab coop and am seeing people recommend against it because they're "always smaller than advertised". I'm confused by this. If the coop is advertised as a 4x6 coop (24 sq feet), and the rule of thumb is 4 sq feet per hen, I know that it can hold 6 hens. Am I missing something? How can that change once I get the coop and put the chickens in?

 

[1muttsfan]

What they mean is that they are usually advertised for far more birds than they can realistically handle. In addition, sometimes the measurements are for both the coop and attached run, making them seem larger than the actual coop itself.

 

[lpfdco237]

Understood. I'll make sure to do my research and know the "real size" of the coop so I can properly determine how many chickens I can safely keep. Thanks for the input

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

What they mean is that they are usually advertised for far more birds than they can realistically handle. In addition, sometimes the measurements are for both the coop and attached run, making them seem larger than the actual coop itself.

X 2 - the measurements listed are quite misleading as they include the actual "coop" space as well as the attached run as the whole unit - leading it to look like a 24 sq. foot coop when, in fact, it is usually about a 4 sq. foot coop and the run is 24 square feet as the coop sets elevated leaving the entire 4x6 footprint open for run space. It's often a matter of reading the terms of "roosting space" (what they call the coop) and "foraging space" (the run)
The manufacturers use minimum space figures far below the more commonly accepted/quoted "4 sq feet inside plus 10 square feet outside = 14 square feet minimum per bird" ----- a pamphlet I recently picked up at a "chick days" display at a local farm store quotes for one coop "3.79 sq feet roosting space, 10.88 sq. feet foraging space - sufficient for 3 birds" -- that works out to 1.26 sq feet inside space per bird and 3.62 sq feet outside -- a TOTAL of 4.88 sq feet per bird which is barely over the more commonly accepted amount of coop space alone.