So many chickens, so little space - Insight?

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Sometimes it's a rodeo if I need to round them up early, otherwise they all go back to the coop about 40 minutes before sundown, the young ones sometimes wait until nearly dark, but as they mature they start going in sooner, I just go out after dark and put the ramp door close for the night. I am also lucky that there's a corner to chase them into, but the buggers can run.

My large fowl have no run, so a few years ago when a coyote came calling he was able to get ten of them before we got him, in the distance future I plan to build a large fenced in area. But I have donkeys right now in the shed and they keep things from coming into the shed.

 

[Chuckcluck]

Here is what I did. I have 11 hens in a 7x7 hen house with an attached 4X12 chain link run. In addition to that, I have an electric (165 foot) net that I set up in any shape I want. During the day, the chickens leave the house go out through the run and forage in the electric net. At night they go back in through the run and into the house before the automatic door closes. I close off the electric net in the winter since there is no forage and they have done fine just using the 4x12 run during the day. I have two roost bars in the house and no fights in two years. Also no loss to predators. I have seen foxes come up to the outer fence and walk away. I think a slightly larger hen house would be all you would need.

 

[1muttsfan]

Here are my coops - each has a pop door into an attached run, which in turn have access doors that can be left open for free ranging. I never leave my chickens out when they are unattended, too many predators in this area.

Teach your birds to come running whenever you shake a can of grain, and feed them only inside the coop or inside the run. They quickly learn to follow you inside of the run to get their treat.

 

[1muttsfan]

 

[aart]

I'm for the big coop and day secure run, I never free range for various reasons....but even if I did, the large coop and secure run would be a must IMO.

What your long term goals are, and what your climate is, can have a big affect on what kind of coop you build.

 

[Brigabart]

I have too many chickens . It can be daunting, but it can also be done. I would love to free range my hens, but we have a hawk in the yard, foxes that trot through in the daytime, and coyotes in the evenings. Heavy predator action! My girls have a coop that allows for 4 sq feet per hen and a small run - only 5 sq feet per hen. But it's very fortified, with three feet of concrete foundation and hardware wire. The lower half has hardware wire and will get additional goat wire this weekend. Outside there is 3 feet of welded wire going out from the coop to prevent digging predators. We also have a roof. Inside the coop, we deal with overcrowding by using lots of roosts (2x4's, 2x6's, logs, a tire, rocks, etc). I pick up poop twice a day from the coop and run. They get cabbages and other veggies in hanging holders and suet feeders. I have food and water in the coop and in the run so no one is pushed away. There's a sand pile and a dirt bath area. The coop has floor space, a 2.5 foot x 12 foot shelf, and 30 feet of roosting space - we put roosts in front of the windows also. It's definitely more high maintainance to have a heavy load of hens, but my hens are happy - no picking at each other, shiny and healthy, no worm load. I use DE and also give them brewers yeast, probiotics, herbs, oatmeal, and BOSS in their feed. They get a very high quality scratch in the evenings and various tablescraps. We are building a moveable cage that could house 4-6 hens during the day to move around the garden. We also have a 6x12 foot dog pen that the hens can hang out in, but only if we are with them. I usually spend 1-3 hours a day with them. Love those chicks!

 

[BYC910]

Hey everyone, need some assistance with a coop dilemma.

So the amount of chickens that we have coming our way is a tad daunting: 18 is the final count. My original plan was to build two chicken tractors out of PVC or CPVC with a sturdy wooden base and having 9 in each one. With the square footage recommendations on this site, that would make it around a 12x5, give or take. After speaking it over with my wife, she wants only one tractor. This, however, would come out to be something like 20 feet by 10 feet, way too big for what I'm looking for. If that's the case, I'll just build a coop and fence in a huge run for them. The amount of land I'm working with becomes a problem though. With what amounts to approximately one acre of developed land, it's going to be difficult to have that much space dedicated to chickens as well as the other things we want later on down the road (goats, big vegetable garden, flower garden, a garage, additions). Until I address the other forested acre, I'm kind of stuck.

So my question is this. Would it be better to have two tractors or one non-moveable coop and forego that extra land at the moment. She says that I wouldn't really need to have a specific run, just make a fence surrounding the property. Yet, how would you deal with predators, or the chickens not coming when called, or them laying eggs everywhere but the hen house? My desire for a tractor centers on the fact that I can rotate where the chickens eat, thus making it easier to eliminate them tearing up more grass than I want.

Any insight?

Thanks everyone.

welcome to the BYC you say you have another acre that is a forest . put your coop at the edge of the forest and build your run into the forest . do it so you can cover it with some type of good wire . I use dog kennels from TSC they make quick runs they aren't cheap . but are easy to move . 10x10 ft. and cover them with 4x2 wire that I lap and wire together . I then lap down at least 6 ins. on the kennel panels and wire it to them . I use loop ties and pig tail twisters to tie the wire . if you don't know what this are. ask at Lowes or home depot . your chickens will take care of cleaning the woods out for you . be careful or you'll end up with many more chickens than you need.

 

[Cheep N Peep]

BYC10 made a good point- no one has talked about using the forested acre. My back yard is very densely forested with scrub oak and pine, which is odd because the rest of the neighborhood doesn't have that many trees, all in all. Anyway, I cleared out a lot of the underbrush, and before I decided to use an old Craigslist trampoline as a frame for my run, I was going to tack up chicken wire from tree to tree, eight feet high. Then, I would have strung thin rope or string across the top of the run to make a 'web' to discourage flighty hens and hawks. The trees provide shade in the summer, leaves for winter bedding in the fall, and help shield the run from snow (a tiny bit) during the winter. I say it's at least worth a thought.