Should I buy more chickens??

[bowe0508]

I am planning on adding on to my 18 chickens but I am worried about space.There is a good sized chicken house in the back of the pen too.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Do you know the dimensions of your coop? Each bird should have approximately 4 square feet of inside coop space, thought that measurement can vary.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

People will be throwing numbers of square ft at you. Like 4 sqft in coop per bird is a must. It's not the case if you don't lock your birds in the coop for days on end.

Chickens like space and don't do well if too cramped. In reality birds are caged in laying industry for their protection as they'd injure and kill one another at those population densities. They don't really care where that space is as long as they have it. If you are getting a bit tight on space now your introductions wont fair very well. It will be a long integration process. There are ways to get around that to slowly introduce the birds. The big thing is run space. I'll ask a few questions and give you my opinion. Keep in mind all any of us are giving is opinions. Some with more experience behind it than others.



How much run space do you have in sqft or square meters? (I don't know where you live so either units will work)

Do you get winters? Do you lock birds in coop in cold weather?

How many roosts do you have and how long are they?

 

[Mrs. K]

Personally, I think that in the winter you need more coop space. You can cheat a bit in the summer. The days are long, and they spend most of it outside. In the winter, whether or not you shut them in, the dark will confine them to the coop. The long nights and over crowding is a tough deal.

The thing with a flock is, birds come and go. You can add, but often times, either immediately or later you have to cull. Chicken math is a real problem, but it won't be if you can cull some too. Some people find it difficult to cull a chicken either by giving it away or doing the deed. If you fall into that group, then be very careful how many you add.

If you can cull birds, well in the summer, I generally hatch birds, and sometimes get well beyond my space, however, by fall, one has to really look at the measurements, and the number of full grown birds, or you will get bad habits from over crowded birds. You can risk it, if you can cull to stop problems immediately. If culling is going to take time, then again, you need to be careful of your numbers.

Mrs K

 

[Free Feather]

How big is your coop, how bad is your Winter, and what do you want more chickens for? Do you need more?

 

[bowe0508]

People will be throwing numbers of square ft at you. Like 4 sqft in coop per bird is a must. It's not the case if you don't lock your birds in the coop for days on end.

Chickens like space and don't do well if too cramped. In reality birds are caged in laying industry for their protection as they'd injure and kill one another at those population densities. They don't really care where that space is as long as they have it. If you are getting a bit tight on space now your introductions wont fair very well. It will be a long integration process. There are ways to get around that to slowly introduce the birds. The big thing is run space. I'll ask a few questions and give you my opinion. Keep in mind all any of us are giving is opinions. Some with more experience behind it than others.



How much run space do you have in sqft or square meters? (I don't know where you live so either units will work)

Do you get winters? Do you lock birds in coop in cold weather?

How many roosts do you have and how long are they?

I will do some measurements but I am sure my chicken pen is big enough to handle a good bit more chickens the only thing I am worried about is my chicken house.I will try to add a picture of it.