To many for 6x8 coop?

[crealbilly]

I have 17 RIR hens and 2 BBB all about 24 weeks old. My hens are laying good I got 16 eggs today but they have been averaging around 12 for the past week.

My co-op is 6x8 with a tall roof 7' on the short side 9' on the tall side. I put in 12' of 1x4 roost around the upper part of the of the coop. There are 6 nest boxes and one 2' x 2' box for the BBB turkeys. Do I have enough roost space or should I add a little more?

Full view

 

[Pyxis]

Your coop is big enough for 12 birds at most, so yes, it is too small for that many birds. As for roost space, the rule of thumb is to allow 8" per bird, so you have enough roost space for 18 birds. They do tend to all cram together on the roost so you may be able to go a little smaller than that, but currently your coop is too small for all the birds you have.

 

[drumstick diva]

You may need more roost space - they also need enough distance away from a wall so they can turn around without difficulty. If you have a Tom turkey, he can actually kill a chicken hen if he tries to breed her ( and he will try) You may have questions that would be best be answered on the "Turkey thread..

 

[drumstick diva]

Least I forget your coop is too small for the number of birds you have. Inside the coop a chicken needs 4-5 sq You . feet per bird . I have no idea how much room turkeys require.. In the outdoor run - a chicken needs 10 sq. feet per bird. You also need good ventilation in the coop to keep poultry healthy. I can't see if you have any vents, etc.

 

[junebuggena]

Nest boxes should also be placed at least a foot lower than the lowest roost. And the roosts should not be flush against the walls. They need room to sit, move, and turn around. You can get by with a too small coop if they have a large covered portion of run for shelter during storms. Otherwise there will be problems.

 

[junebuggena]

Also doesn't look like there is any ventilation in that coop. You need ventilation to vent out moist air and prevent ammonia from building up. A box fan will not cut it, and you will need to clean it frequently.

 

[crealbilly]

Thanks everyone for your replies.

There is good ventilation I guess what you don't see are roof vents and a vent over the man door that I had open when taking pictures. The box fan is over an open window and its been running 24x7 this summer. I will cut it off at night when the weather gets colder.

The 1x4 roosts are 1' from the wall again hard to see in the pictures. Is 1' enough?

The two turkeys (1 Tom and 1 hen) will be leaving as soon as the first frost hits in about 4 weeks. I'm planing on carving off a section of the fenced in chicken yard which is 50' x 100' for the two turkeys. That way I can isolate them from the chickens and give the chickens more coop space. It will also allow me to feed the turkeys 21% meat bird feed - currently the are eating 16% layer with the RIR hens.

Thankfully they all seem to get along well together - I have had zero problems so far. I'm thinking that's because they have a large yard that they can access any time, I did put two 4x8 covered areas out there in the yard so they can get out of the weather without having to go into the coop. But they all head for the coop at dusk.

 

[junebuggena]

1 inch is not enough. They need to be at least 6 inches away. And your ventilation is too low to be effective. And the nest boxes should not be at the same height as the roosts.

 

[crealbilly]

1 inch is not enough. They need to be at least 6 inches away. And your ventilation is too low to be effective. And the nest boxes should not be at the same height as the roosts.

OK well at least I got enough sapcing for the roost away from the wall. As they are spaced 1' (1 foot) away. I'll see what I can do for the ventilation and roost/ nest box heights.

Thanks you all are a lot of help

 

[junebuggena]

Where you put the nest boxes is where vents should have been placed. Roof line ventilation is the most effective at moving bad air out of the coop. Vents should be cut into the low side and the high side to encourage a cross breeze.