Size of flock with current coop / run

[Cindy in PA]

A small coop is fine until you get 10 days of 0 degree weather, with off & on rain & snow & they stay in the coop the whole time. We are just getting out of that, but the icy mix that is on their run this morning can't be scraped off & will have to melt, so they might spend a "warm" 40 degree day in the coop again. Just spread another bag of chopped hay before this mess & will have to do it again because they have spent a few days in a coop that has 5 square feet per bird.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

Yes, I do agree with that, I stated that it was a general statement,I don’t personally live by it

My response wasn’t aimed at you.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Since you are out of town on long weekends or something that huge run doesn’t count since they don’t have access. You are limited to the 4x10 area. That 15’ x 50’ area is great when they can use it but it does not count when they can’t. It is not just about space, it’s how you manage that space.

Modifying your profile to show your general location can really help with questions like this. If you live where you never see snow then the comments about snow don’t mean much to you. But something else might. Your general location is often very helpful information to have.

I don’t believe in magic numbers for space or much else to do with chickens. If you follow the link in my signature you may get an understanding of why. With my understanding of how you manage your current set-up I would not recommend adding any more chickens. If they had been raised together you could probably have another chicken or maybe even two more in that space, depending some on your climate and some other factors. But they were not raised together, that 4x10 is really small to go through an integration. If they are getting along in that now I would not mess with it.

 

[Wlaubernds]

Since you are out of town on long weekends or something that huge run doesn’t count since they don’t have access. You are limited to the 4x10 area. That 15’ x 50’ area is great when they can use it but it does not count when they can’t. It is not just about space, it’s how you manage that space.

Modifying your profile to show your general location can really help with questions like this. If you live where you never see snow then the comments about snow don’t mean much to you. But something else might. Your general location is often very helpful information to have.

I don’t believe in magic numbers for space or much else to do with chickens. If you follow the link in my signature you may get an understanding of why. With my understanding of how you manage your current set-up I would not recommend adding any more chickens. If they had been raised together you could probably have another chicken or maybe even two more in that space, depending some on your climate and some other factors. But they were not raised together, that 4x10 is really small to go through an integration. If they are getting along in that now I would not mess with it.

Appreciate it. I updated my profile. I am in Portland OR so winters are generally mild but wet. I have yet to have a day that the chickens prefer to stay in the coop. Even when we had snow on the ground this year they liked to play in it and only went back to the inclosed run for food and water.

Also, the long weekends are generally 2-3 per year over the summer. We do have longer breaks for camping trips, etc, but arrange for neighbors to come by and let the chickens out and put them back in. They get the eggs those days so it is never hard to find takers.

Instead of adding more pullets now, I'd like to add two new chicks this spring. Looks like I might make some adjustments to the coop before then.

Thanks!

 

[Wlaubernds]

I think the "coop size rule" is a bit misleading depending on the design of the coop. In my case I have a 4' x 5' roost box (was a coop with a nest box) with 11' of roost boards. I have 9 pullets and most of them are on one 4' roost with a couple on the 3' roost and none on the old 4' roost. I feel that the roost box can comfortably hold 15 chickens. Their food, water and roll out nest box is in the "run" which is about 14' x 10'. My "coop" is similar to your design with a smaller roost box and a larger enclosed run. At sunrise I open the "run" so they have access to the chicken yard (5' chain link fence) which is about 30' x 40' or so. Every one has a different situation so the 4' rule is just a guide.

JT

I appreciate this different response. I have one roost that all 4 chickens like to go on: https://s3.amazonaws.com/rwgps/screenshots/MH5s7LKc.png

Any time I check on them I never see them on any other roost.

I have two roosts that run perpendicular to that roost that they never seem to sleep on: https://s3.amazonaws.com/rwgps/screenshots/eY4orSWB.png.

I plan to take one of those roost out to maybe make it easier for them access the other roost. Then, likely in the spring raise two new chicks that I can add to the flock at the right time. My idea being that not all my chickens are the same age and I am adding new young birds as the older birds might slow down on production.

Thanks for the help and advice!

 

[jthornton]

If you use the "Upload a File" button you can put the thumbnail of your photo in your post. I'm not sure what s3.amazonaws.com is so I'm not clicking on it

JT

 

[Wlaubernds]

If you use the "Upload a File" button you can put the thumbnail of your photo in your post. I'm not sure what s3.amazonaws.com is so I'm not clicking on it

JT

Hal No problem. I'll upload the files. AWS is Amazon's hosting service (Amazon Web Services), which is what a good chunk of the internet (even this site maybe) is hosted on. What I shared was just an image link that I load to that service, but I see you point.

Thanks JT.