So since size DOES matter...how big?

[DawnSuiter]

I just came inside from putting our 7 four week old buffs into their new coop for the daylight hours while we finish the outside walls, and I gotta say... I INSTANTLY thought.. OMG this is NOT going to be enough room.

Mind you, I have nearly 100sf available for these little guys, and they are only a quarter of their full grown size. Not to mention, that I intended to house 20 full grown hens in this here hen house within the next 2 months, that is clearly barely big enough for 7!!

I had planned for 5 sf of floor space per bird inside, and frankly that's not enough for them IMO to have room to move around, run, spread their wings, and generally enjoy themselves fully, flapping & frolicking.

Good luck!

 

[dixygirl]

Well I have 100sq ft for 5 bantams and 2 cornish crosses. I think it might work in my situation.

Isn't it true that 4 bantams occupy the size of 1 standard chicken?


Based on that it is as if i will have the equivalent of a little over 3 standard chickens in my 100 sq ft.

 

[Davaroo]

Quote:
That'll work

 

[doctinker]

Does the height of the coop matter? Suppose I build a coop for 30 hens x 4' = 120 sq ft. and I make it one foot tall?

My hens only stay on the floor long enough to jump onto the roosting bars and the higher the bars go the better they like it. Staggering the bars makes it easy for them to reach the top and prevents droppings from hitting the girls who get to stay on the lower bars.

Before reading this thread, I had suggested to MrsDoc that we open up the rest of the shed to the hens and that is probably what we will do, but it will require some motivation to get my lazy carcass off this couch.

Anyway, the hens are happily wandering about in their 1600 sq ft fenced run and none of them are showing signs of picking. I'm also currently clearing another 2000 sq ft for them and a possible addition of ducks, who will have their own house but will share the run.

Doc

 

[derby]

"Get 16 floor tiles and lay them out, 4 to a side, in a square. That is 4 sq ft. "


Actually, I think that is 16 square feet. 4 square feet would be a square made of 4 tiles, 2 to each side.

Derby

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

Oh and dixygirl...NO MORE! NO BABIES!!

HEHE That's what I said and I was SERIOUS! Good luck!​

 

[DawnSuiter]

Quote:
gosh your right... can you imagine????
2' X 2' for a full grown hen...
the 5 gallon bucket mentioned wouldn't even really fit... it's the same as being in a tiny cage!

I really should've visualized this better before I planned... and I think this example here is a PERFECT way to visualize. I will remember this analogy ANY TIME someone asks.. "how much room?"

frankly, I've already started building a hardware cloth outdoor coop w/a roof addition equal to the size of our indoor coop, they will have free access to both at all times, and that should make me feel better about keeping 20-25 hens in that space.. that's 200sf total floor, pluse yards and yards of perches.

 

[dftkarin]

Does the height of the coop make a difference for heavy breeds? My current plan for a coop is a 4'x6' with the 1st level a 2' high enclosed run and the second story only 2-3 feet tall (so the whole coop will be 5 feet tall) and movable. I would like to have space for 5 heavy hens. I do plan to let them free range a bit around my tiny backyard each day while I'm out with them.

Inside: 24 square feet, but since its short, the roost will take up space that would be counted as floor space in a taller coop.

Rainy/snowy day protected run: 24 square feet (but the ramp and waterer will take up some space).

Should I plan to build a little taller enclosed part? I want to be able to move the whole thing around on in my yard - tractor-style.

 

[brownfarms]

Thanks Davaroo. I'm getting push back from DH on the size. I copied and pasted your post into an email.

 

[Davaroo]

2 tiles on a side would be a square, 2 ft on each side, for a total of four.
Another way of looking at it would be 2 to the second power, or two squared. 4 sq ft is 4 squared, or 16.
But regardless, 2 ft, 4 ft, the point is well made.

In the coop or roosting/nesting areas, 4 sq ft will suffice, particularly in temperate climes where the birds dont have to be confined in the coop in winter. In harsher climates, you have to be more cautious and err on the side of space.