Run square footage?

[reddpepper86]

Hi everyone!
So my hubby and I got some chicks to start our backyard flock.

We've converted the shed we have on our property into a coop and the chicks will move in when they're big enough. For now they've dominated the garage haha!

We've framed out the run and its a good size. I plan on adding roosting bars and such inside the run, so does that add to the square footage? Or is the square footage simply floor space? They will also be roaming our acre property for a good portion of the day once our fence is complete.

So I'm just curious how many hens we can have with the space we have. The floor of the run is a little over 100sqft. The coop floor is about 40sqft.
How many chickens do you think would be comfortable with what we have?

 

[cavemanrich]

According to the CHICKEN FEDERATION. You are ideally setup for 10 chickens. Remember that each operation will differ, so these are general guidelines. Try that amount or less and see how thing work out for you. After you get seasoned in chicken keeping , decide if you want more or less. Overcrowding is something to be avoided. It has been known to give chicken keepers headaches.
WISHING YOU BEST and

 

[blackdog043]

What caveman said, start with 10. If you give us a general location where you are, we will know better about your weather conditions, which will have an impact on how many birds you could have. How long will you have them in the coop only, at times? This is where you would run into more issues IMO, with your set up.

 

[Pork Pie]

http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/how-much-room-do-chickens-need

 

[aart]

I plan on adding roosting bars and such inside the run, so does that add to the square footage?

Ehhhh...kinda, but not really.
It's good to have roosts in the run, and other things they can get up on or under or behind(but not dead ends). One thing to keep in mind of your run roosts are higher than your coop roosts, they may prefer to sleep on the run roosts.

Welcome to BYC!

 

[reddpepper86]

Ehhhh...kinda, but not really.
It's good to have roosts in the run, and other things they can get up on or under or behind(but not dead ends). One thing to keep in mind of your run roosts are higher than your coop roosts, they may prefer to sleep on the run roosts.

Welcome to BYC!

Thanks so much for the response! That helps because I was wondering about that as far as roosts in the run go.

 

[reddpepper86]

What caveman said, start with 10. If you give us a general location where you are, we will know better about your weather conditions, which will have an impact on how many birds you could have. How long will you have them in the coop only, at times? This is where you would run into more issues IMO, with your set up.

I only plan on having them in their coop at night. When our fencing is finished next month they will be out pretty much all day - free to roam the property.

 

[aart]

I only plan on having them in their coop at night.

The best laid plans.........good to have a secure run in case of a predation event.

What is your climate?
Good to put your location in your profile,
many answers/suggestions are climate dependent.

 

[reddpepper86]

The best laid plans.........good to have a secure run in case of a predation event.

What is your climate?
Good to put your location in your profile,
many answers/suggestions are climate dependent.

Good to know - I'll have to do that! I live on the Oregon Coast so we have very humid weather conditions and lots of rain in the fall/winter/spring.

 

[aart]

lots of rain in the fall/winter/spring.

Will you put a solid roof on your run?
Watch and plan for drainage/runoff issues around coop and run to keep the area as dry as possible