Starting a flock

[smfarman]

Hi Iam smfarman, I am located in central Florida. My plans were to get 6 to 8 chicks, but friends & family I have 15 - 4 Barred Rocks 6wks old, 4-Silver laced Wayndottes 6wks old, 4-Buff Orphingtons 4 wks old, and 3-Black Australorps 2 wks old all age groups are separated for now. I have been following byc for a little while and got so inspired by the ideas to get started so got chicks on April 24th they where 2wks old. But I am not sure what size coop to build, would an 8 x 12 with a run be big enough? Thank you

 

[BlueBaby]

Hello, and welcome! Glad that you joined us! Good luck with your new flock!

 

[CarpCharacin]

Welcome to BYC! We're glad you decided to join our wonderful community!

 

[smfarman]

Thank you

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi and welcome to BYC and congrats on your new hobby. This link is very helpful for coop / run planning - http://www.backyardchickens.com/a/how-much-room-do-chickens-need

Here are some links to key resources:

• List of guides on how to use the site - announcements-feedback-issues-guides.3
• Great resource for beginners = https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/category/learning-center.11/
• Good starting point for browsing the site - https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/
• Interesting feedback on how members manage their flocks -https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/topic-of-the-week-thread-archives
• Excellent source of local information - Find your State's thread.

Best wishes

Pork Pie

 

[007Sean]

Howdy and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.

Happy to have you here with us. Enjoy your time here at BYC!

Thanks for joining our community!

 

[Fishkeeper]

If you kept all 15 birds, you'd need a coop of at least 60 square feet, and a run of at least 150. However, you're going to have roosters, so you won't be able to keep all of them in the same pen. You'll have to pick your favorite rooster.
Yes, an 8 by 12 coop would work for the birds you have. That's 96 square feet, so you could have up to 24 birds in there. That means that a 240-square-foot run would be ideal, but smaller than that would work.
You need 4 square feet per bird in the coop, 10 per bird in the run. It's best to make more space than you'll need for the birds you have, so you have space to add more birds. Plus, more space is always better even if you don't plan to get more birds. If you have the choice between adding to the coop and adding to the run, assuming both are already big enough, it's generally best to add to the run.

 

[rjohns39]

Hi and welcome to at BYC We're so happy you decided to join us

 

[ClucksAndCombs]

Welcome to BYC!

Feel free to ask questions, there are so many wonderful and knowledgeable people who will answer them

Good luck with your new flock!

 

[DobieLover]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.
You didn't mention if you got sexed pullets or straight run. Let's assume you got sexed pullets and it was 100% accurate.
An 8x12 coop would plenty big.
The 10 sq/bird area often quoted here is a minimum. I personally find it unacceptably small. Build the largest, most secure run you can.
I shoot for 20 sq ft/bird and my run is as secure as the coop so I never close my pop door and the birds have free access to both spaces at all times. This has prevented behavioral issues amongst the birds. I have never witnessed anything but normal pecking order drama.