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Doublegi said:
5x8 is a very big coop for your birds. Keep in mind most large breeds only need 3-4 sq feet of coop space and about 10sq I’d run. That’s enough space for 10-13 chickens in the coop and 8 chickens in the run. For a max of 8 chickens a coop of 24-32 sq feet would be enough, so something like 5x5 or 5x6 would be fine.

If the coop is too big, they’ll have a harder time staying warm in the winter.
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Oh that is good to know! I was worried about crowding but that makes total sense. For the run what size would you recommend? When I am home they will be allowed to free range it up :p
 
jenemal said:
Hello!

My name is Jen and I have been dying to get chickens for years and finally just bought my own home and now can actually get some! I am very new to chickens and have a couple of friends who raise them and suggested I check out this site for all of the chicken knowledge. I pretty much have been non stop reading and trying to soak up as much information as I can.

I am hoping to get some feathered family (primarily for eggs and pets) in the Spring of 2020 but would like to have everything all set and ready for them before the end of the summer so I can monitor and check coop temperatures/ conditions throughout our fall and winter (I live in Ohio).

Right now I work for The Ohio State University with my PhD in Biomedical Engineering but am also a professional cyclist. I have two rescue pups (an "Ohio Brown Dog" and an Old English Sheepdog) and am a huge animal lover. My other hobbies include painting and gardening.

I cannot wait to meet you all and am open to any and all chicken advice :)!
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Welcome to the forums. Being a complete newbie myself, I might not have tons of advice, but will help if/when able. My DIL is going for her doctorate in biomedical engineering up in Boston, what a small world!
 
Doublegi said:
5x8 is a very big coop for your birds. Keep in mind most large breeds only need 3-4 sq feet of coop space and about 10sq I’d run. That’s enough space for 10-13 chickens in the coop and 8 chickens in the run. For a max of 8 chickens a coop of 24-32 sq feet would be enough, so something like 5x5 or 5x6 would be fine.

If the coop is too big, they’ll have a harder time staying warm in the winter.
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Might be large for a 4 chicken flock, but chicken math tells me that it will quickly grow ;)
 
Wee Farmer Sarah said:
When it’s really cold and snowy your chickens may not want to hang out in the run. Making the coop larger allows for chicken math and more space for bored birds. Bored birds in cramped spaces leads to behavior problems such as feather picking between the birds.
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Either make the coop larger or make the run FULLY secured, attached to the coop and 'winterize-able'. Then you never have to close the pop door between the coop and run and they have A LOT more space:
run finished.jpg
 

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