Trust me on this....Whatever you are thinking of building....build it BIGGER! Chicks are addicting. The bigger the better. I would reccommend 1' of roosting per bird even though it will not all be occupied. Gives them some choice. With the pecking order in effect some may need to get away a little bit.
Cargo, it's completely ok, people on BYC do that fairly frequently, I think it is because I talk about numbers and lumber and caulk and that stuff a lot LOL
Thanks for all the advice. I am adding to my flock but they are very territorial and I knew I needed a new house for a new group, especially since they will be babies when I get them. Will keep you posted on the progress.
I have 7.5sq' per bird in the coop and initially thought I had room for more. Now, after being in operation for a bit, I don't feel I have room for more chickens and am very happy I started small. This is how I like to care for them, I'm sure more would fit and be healthy, but I like the way this works for us.
Hi! My coop is a little larger that 9 x 9 with a 10 x 20 run...I have 20 birds. I wanted to max out my coop and run
It's what us newbies do!!
Now that I've had my chickens in it for a few months I think I would have preferred maybe 12-15 chickens in it. It would stay cleaner and I do think
it's a little crowded for my taste. I put 4 nest boxes in and they usually use two...occasionally the third one. The fourth box I plan on closing
up and using it for storage.
I have two roosts at the same level that span the width of the coop, so 18ft of roosts. Plenty of roosting space, but I think I'm going to put them at
two different levels at some point.
I have a 4 x 9 service area that the nest boxes stick out into. It's great to have extra space inside for feed, shavings, grit, etc. I have room to put
a dog kennel in for an injured bird or for doing introductions.
Just sharing what's worked for me and what I'd change.