SQUARE FOOTAGE QUESTION

[Ramblin Rooster]

HI I know that they say so many feet per bird but just wondering if I have 12 x 12' coop and 25 x 25' run how many chickens can I keep? thanks

 

[Chick Charm]

If you already understand how many chickens per sf of space then why are you attempting this question. Do you want 36 as an answer or 62 or.... ???

What type of chickens will you be keeping? What type of terrain do you have.

 

[Arielle]

I have a similar sized set up--25 birds are very comfortable in the run. KEep the area interesting adding logs, and toys and pumpkins, etc. THe coopis the real issue as they need space when the weather is lousy and they don't budge off the roosts.

Birds neeed more room than the numbers show to be happy thriving creatures.

I started by running "the numbers" and found too many factors influenced the outcome. Happy chickens tells the number is right.

 

[cstronks]

You can certainly do 25 birds in that house. If they are large breed, go with 25, if they are medium or smaller size birds, you can do more. That is a good amount of space for a large flock. Make sure you have enough roost space though...that is where it can get tight. I wish I had a coop with those dimensions!

The "rule of thumb" is 4 square feet per bird, so with 144 sq ft your talking a flock of 36. It can be played with, and you could certainly add more (probably no more than 10), or you can have a smaller flock if you want to care for less birds.

 

[Chick Charm]

Or you can start with your chickens of choice on a smaller scale and see how they do in that space. If you want to add more without creating any issues then go for it. Too many chickens can cause "cake" if you are on dirt. Or even excessive work with overcrowding.

 

[Ramblin Rooster]

They are on cement floor in barn. Plan to expand coop or make a new one soon. Have 15 birds in now, but 15 more in basement and lots more hatching this spring.