So do I REALLY need a walk-in coop?

[Ben Lynnsy]

Sounds like you have some very constraining constraints.

Maybe I missed it, but.....
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
View attachment 3202029

Geographical aspects should guide your design.
Hot climate have very different considerations than freezing cold snowy ones do.

Will go do that right now. Thanks for telling me about that. I'm in central NC, in the piedmont. Most of the time it's pretty moderate.... we rarely get super-cold spells in the winter, and not more than a few inches of snow. Summer is hot and humid, sometimes into the 90's for a few weeks at a time. Occasional hurricanes. UGH.

 

[tripletfeb]

NICE!! Did you build that coop? It's BEAUTY!! That's kinda what I have in mind. It would be just right for me, and I'd sit it inside a prebuilt 8X8 predator-protected 8x8 run that I could buy from Tractor Supply. I hate this "not being able to build stuff", but I just don't have the strength to muscle that stuff around anymore, or the help.
I'm thinking I will prolly not be affected by chicken math either. I want enough chicks to have about 3 eggs per day, and that's enough. I have enough "collections" of things that do not require daily care, LOL. I just want to be able to eat eggs, LOL

Yes, hubby and I built it. I love everything about it, I really do. I forgot to mention that the roosts are removable so I can scrape them if I need too. We looked up Carolina Coops and copied some of their ideas. I live in Ohio so my winters are colder than yours, with lots of snow. So those doors in the front have removable faces, they just slide in and out. We did make a plexiglass one so the girls still get light in the coop. But the coop door that leads into the run is open 24/7 all year long. The run is predator proof with an apron around it. My coop is 4'x5'. Good luck on whatever you decide and I can answer any other questions you might have about the coop

 

[Ben Lynnsy]

Yes, hubby and I built it. I love everything about it, I really do. I forgot to mention that the roosts are removable so I can scrape them if I need too. We looked up Carolina Coops and copied some of their ideas. I live in Ohio so my winters are colder than yours, with lots of snow. So those doors in the front have removable faces, they just slide in and out. We did make a plexiglass one so the girls still get light in the coop. But the coop door that leads into the run is open 24/7 all year long. The run is predator proof with an apron around it. My coop is 4'x5'. Good luck on whatever you decide and I can answer any other questions you might have about the coop

Thanks! I printed the pix of your coop and run, for future reference. I love the idea of interchangeable door faces. I was thinking of having HWcloth inserts for summer, and then plexi for winter would be really nice for the chicks. If I got the 8x8 closed-top welded wire run from Tractor Supply, mine will be open 24/7 too. The decision about the run is the only one I've made, LOL. And of course, if I can come up with a nice run to be part of the coop design, the run purchase might not happen. I did want a run where I can go sit with the chickens, so they will get used to me and not be afraid.

 

[Folly's place]

Here we have hardware cloth windows, and add sheet vinyl in winter to close them up. Where you are, they can be uncovered all year.
That TSC run is not predator proof, so having your coop open at night will not be a good idea. If you cover the entire thing with well secured hardware cloth, and add a good skirt, it would work.
Mary

 

[Ben Lynnsy]

Here we have hardware cloth windows, and add sheet vinyl in winter to close them up. Where you are, they can be uncovered all year.
That TSC run is not predator proof, so having your coop open at night will not be a good idea. If you cover the entire thing with well secured hardware cloth, and add a good skirt, it would work.
Mary

Yeah, I'd plan to cover the bottom 3 ft or so with hardware cloth and add a skirt. The upper part might be OK covered with chicken wire...... you think??? If not, I can close them up at night. I'd have to do that for a while anyhow, because it will take a while to get the run ready.

 

[Folly's place]

Many predators can climb very well; no openings anywhere larger than 1/2" diameter! Sooner or later disasters happen, and we learn. It's not fun.
You might find a chainlink dog run on craigslist, and it's not a bad choice, realizing that it's not totally predator proof either. Electric fencing around the outside of the run is a good deterrent too. If you have bears, it's essential.
Mary

 

[tripletfeb]

Thanks! I printed the pix of your coop and run, for future reference. I love the idea of interchangeable door faces. I was thinking of having HWcloth inserts for summer, and then plexi for winter would be really nice for the chicks. If I got the 8x8 closed-top welded wire run from Tractor Supply, mine will be open 24/7 too. The decision about the run is the only one I've made, LOL. And of course, if I can come up with a nice run to be part of the coop design, the run purchase might not happen. I did want a run where I can go sit with the chickens, so they will get used to me and not be afraid.

Yes, my windows are all covered in hardware cloth. I assumed you would cover the run in hardware cloth as well. Please do that, predators can climb and dig, like @Folly's place said

 

[Chickenlover2009]

A walk in coop makes life easier if you have difficult winters.

Let me add if you plan on upgrading the coop and adding more chickens at some point you can probably make due for the time being with a smaller not walk in coop. But if you plan on keeping chickens for a long time, like….several years perhaps….then a walk in coop will be worthwhile. Even if it’s just a small 5x5 or whatever. You gotta think that you will be feeding/watering every day. And you will be cleaning the coop at least weekly, if not daily. Do you really want to be crawling around in chicken dust and poo for several years??

A walk in coop is not necessary but it is easier to clean and you can spend more tome with your birds and bond with them more. It especially is handy if you have show birds to put in a poultry show. It also works well to check in on your birds if you have a walk in coop.

 

[3KillerBs]

I was thinking a flatter style would allow a bigger horizontal space, and a nice pull-out drawer for cleaning would work. For those few chickens, do I REALLY need a walk-in coop?

I'm going to respond to this first post before I read the rest of the thread since it's gotten rather long.

I see you're in Central NC. I am too, in the Sandhills.

This is my Little Monitor Coop -- which was carefully worked out to meet all the minimums for 4 chickens and to function in our HOT climate and the limited space in my then-backyard.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-little-monitor-coop.76275/

It's not walk-in, but my tall sons can touch the far wall from the access door and I can reach anything I need to clean out easily with a small shovel.

This, is my Outdoor Brooder. It's walk-in-bent-over and is absolutely torturous to clean. Before I put the floor it, it was actually easier to enlist my sons to help me roll it on it's side then to go inside with a pitchfork.

That low height is also responsible for me getting 10 staples in my scalp a year ago this week. https://www.backyardchickens.com/posts/24739256

So, my initial response is that a walk-in coop is not *necessary* but it's highly desirable to have easy access to all parts of the coop.

 

[3KillerBs]

Since you're in NC, here's my article on Hot Climate chicken-keeping: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/hot-climate-chicken-housing-and-care.77263/

And my article on ventilation: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/

if I have a slide out tray,

I've never tried a slide-out tray but they are reported to be heavy and hard to handle.

In our steamy climate it could be challenging to keep it moving rather than sticking as the wood absorbs water.

You might find this article interesting:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-little-monitor-coop.76275/
It's a coop for 4 hens.
It is not walk-in.
It does have the recommended amount of floorspace, roost space, ventilation, and so forth.
The author of that article used the coop for some years, and is still active on the forum, so you can tag them with questions if you want to know other details about how it performed over time.

Thank you for recommending my coop. I would be happy to answer any questions about it.

This article shows my management of the bedding in it: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/using-deep-bedding-in-a-small-coop.76343/