Space and chickens..and ventilation?

[Sonoran Silkies]

Gail Damerov, the author of numberour books on caring for poultry has a chart in The Chicken Health Handbook (my copy of which has wandered to some unknown spot in my house). It differentiates based upon the size of the chicken and whether the bird is cooped full-time, in a coop with access to a run during daylight hours or is free range.

As best as I remember (can't look it up until I find the wanderer, lol), size is differentiated into small bantam, light and large. Silkies are classified as light. In an enclosed situation (coop plus run) they should have 7 sq ft per bird. For large birds the size is 10 sq ft. For small bantams it is 4 st ft.

A bird who is cooped only at night merely needs roosting space.

edited because my keyboard isn;t working corrrectly

 

[Ms. Cluckingly]

So I am coming back to this thread because I'd like some more info. Husband and I have decided to expand the run when he gets back home from Maryland (in two months). I currently have 5 girls and am picking up JUST ONE EE on Thursday.

Which will be a total of 6 hens. So, with that said, my coop is the same size. I'm almost finished... I'm fixing to paint the inside, and then screen up one more ventilation window. I have two roosts in place. One is 2.5 ft high, the other 3 ft high. Should I add another roost below the 3 ft one? As far as being cooped up in the winter, DH and I are going to cover the run when winter comes, so that they are still able to go out. Our run is going to be in an L shape, kind of utilizing the space we have under our deck. Having lived in Alaska for 5 years and then coming here to Colorado Springs, I'd say that the winters here are mild. It will snow real good for a day or so, and then the snow melts a few days later. I don't believe we had any negative temps this winter either... if you are reading this and you are here in the Springs, please correct me if I'm wrong. So, with all this in mind, (Patandchickens.. I'd really like your advice), this will be ok, right? It's funny, I've visited some different people here in my area who have chickens as well, and I've seen as much as 6 living in a medium sized dog house with no ventilation and no windows, just the dog house door, and they seem to do great. I'm just really scared that I'm doing this all wrong, to be honest.

 

[elmo]

It's good to consider the size of the chicken when coming up with these rules of thumb for coop and run size, but you probably also should consider the temperament of the breed of chicken you're dealing with, too. Some bantams are very lively and active and don't bear confinement well; it's probably not a good idea to confine a chicken like that in the same minimum square footage as a similar sized but very placid breed of bantam.

It turns out that one size really doesn't fit all for chickens, either.

 

[patandchickens]

Ms. Cluckingly :

I have two roosts in place. One is 2.5 ft high, the other 3 ft high. Should I add another roost below the 3 ft one?

You want to have ideally about a foot of linear roost space (total) per chicken, or anyhow at *least* 8" per normal-sized chicken. So you'd have to add up how much total running length of roost you've currently got. You wouldn't want one roost truly *below* another one, though, as the bottom chickens would get badly pooed on

As far as your other question -- it's not how I'd do things myself but I think it has a reasonable chance of working just fine

Good luck, have fun,

Pat​

 

[Knowing Happiness]

Ms. Cluckingly,
Fear not! It is always good to get lots of information and advise before you begin, but don't be afraid of making mistakes. Be afraid of not learning from them. Your girls will tell you if they are happy or crowded. If they are crowded (lots of pecking at each other is probably a good sign of that) you can either expand the area or cull the flock until everyone settles in. Lots of people will tell you what their experience is, and that is their truth. As has been noted, there are a lot of variables and it is impossible to say that you will always be successful if X and you will always have trouble if Y. It sounds like you will be watching the flock because you like it. That is probably the most important thing. Pay attention, and do not be afraid to change things up if something needs to be addressed. If you know what the problems are to look for you can respond in a timely manner. Your real experts are the ones who get to live with you. I am sure you will all (eventually) be just fine.
Roosts are another good example. I tried all manner of calculations and found that even with lots of roost options mine would all snuggle on the highest roost, no matter what. The 5 large breeds probably squeeze themselves onto about 2 feet of roost. Not because that is all there is, but that is how they are happy. I could try telling them that they need to spread out but I am barely keeping the men in white coats away as it is!

 

[Ms. Cluckingly]

Pat and Knowing, thanks so much. As it is right now, they have 8 linear feet of roost space in the coop. The feeders and going to be hung, and we'll create the nest box when they are closer to laying age, and it will be an addition, so as to keep as much space in the coop as possible. I really can't thank ALL of you enough. I'm so worried, but so excited at the same time. Thanks for all your help.

 

[patandchickens]

Ms. Cluckingly :

As it is right now, they have 8 linear feet of roost space in the coop.

Ah, you're plenty good on roost space, then

I really can't thank ALL of you enough. I'm so worried, but so excited at the same time.

I know just what you mean -- I just got a few sheep, and I have ZERO ruminant experience (well, I've been around goats a little bit, but never been in charge of them) and have been pestering BackyardHerds.com people, as well as people on other forums, with all sorts of questions, and they're actual STUPID questions unlike yours here

, because I really want to do everything I can to avoid stupid newbie problems with the sheep. "So worried, but so excited at the same time" describes it pretty well

For the record, two of my sheep have been here for almost 3 wks, and the other three have been here since Saturday, and they are all still alive so far <g>. You'll be fine

Pat​