What is the ideal amount of space for 2 or 3 silkies

[MelissaRose]

I am going to get 1 maybe 2 silkie hens soon and I'm going to build them a coop,I might add a rooster at some point so I'm going to build it for 3. I understand silkies are small,. but how much space do they need?

Also, are all silkies bantams? if so, is it okay for them to live with larger chickens? If it is I will put them with my larger chickens. I just don't want them to get beaten up.

 

[AlleysChicks]

I like big pens, if possible plan for more space (you never know when your girls will raise a clutch). Mine tend to bump into things because they can’t see under all the feathers on their heads. I wouldn’t put them with standard size birds, they tend to get picked on because of their feather type. I just lost my roo that got kicked in the head by a standard while eating.

 

[MelissaRose]

Thanks i'll see what I can do!

 

[Ridgerunner]

I would not get one or two if they are going into their own coop. They are social animals. If you get two and lose one it will not be good.

You might want to follow the link in my signature before you decide on how big a coop you need. It's not just a square feet per chicken thing, there are a lot of variables. In general the tighter you squeeze them the more likely you will have to deal with behavioral problems, the less flexibility you have to deal with issues, and the harder you have to work. Bigger is better.

Where are you getting the Silkies? Not all are bantams but most are. Where you get the Silkies from should be able to tell you their size.

A lot of people keep Silkies with their regular flock and do OK. Integrating any chicken can cause problems even if they are the same size and breed. Different ages, size, or general appearance can make it more challenging. If you can tell us the size of your coops/runs in feet (photos can help) how many and what kind of chickens you have, and how you manage them (free range during the day, when do you lock them up at night and more importantly let then loose in the morning, the age of the Silkies, general info like that the more we may be able to help you. Another issue with Silkies is that they cannot fly. You may have to make special arrangements for hem to roost of get to a nest.

While it may be possible to put Silkies in with your regular flock the right answer for you might be to keep them separated, at least at night. If they have a lot of space during the day thy might be able to range together.

 

[Mraya]

I used to keep my silkies with my standard chickens even though they held their own (they were not being picked on) they were all raised from chicks. My silkies all hung out together and I felt they needed their own coop. The standards hung together the bantams hung together. So I built them their own coop and run. To me they seem much happier. I gave them the same amount of space inside the coop and run as standard. 4sf inside house and 10sf for the run. However I feel that they only use about 3sf per bird in the house since the huddle together at night or go up to roost and maybe 5 sf in the run because they are small and free range and huddle in the run or are up on the roosts.

 

[MelissaRose]

I'm going to try them with the big chickens first and after I get them I will answer all your questions I'm going to get them now! I won't be back for a while

 

[MelissaRose]

Apparently i'm not getting them today