When Should We Have More Than the Minimums for Space?

[MissE]

More room gives the meeker birds a chance to separate themselves from the bullies.

The ground doesn't get as muddy and the grass almost has a chance to grow.

Easier to introduce more birds.

No rush to cull old stock to make room for new stock. This is a biggie for me. What's that? A cloud in the sky? Maybe those ones scheduled for the chopping block will get a short stay of execution.

More room for clutter.

Access to different areas depending on the weather and time of day.

Less chance of stepping in fresh poo.

 

[Alaskan]

Interesting to read the broody comments.

My broodies do just fine in the coop without extra space.

On rare occasions I have had a nasty hen that wanted to kill chicks, and the broody didn't protect the chicks enough. in those situations I needed (and had available) an extra chicken tractor to put the broody into.

I need huge coop square footage for winter.

I REALLY like having extra coops and extra tractors.

Huge square footage in the coop is also great for integration.

 

[aart]

I find it much easier to avoid problems than fix them.

Absolutely!!

 

[rosemarythyme]

More coop space also benefits keepers. When people have small coops for a small flock, that might be enough space for the actual chickens, but how are YOU supposed to get in for anything from routine maintenance, behavioral issues, emergencies? Hard to get tools into a space that's barely big enough to turn around in.

 

[3KillerBs]

Flock integration and BROODY hens! When her hormones tell her to kill everything within a 3 ft radius of her chicks, it's of great benefit to the intruder to be able to get far away and FAST!

Do you leave your broodies with the flock in the regular nest boxes or give them their own space inside the coop?

More room for clutter.

Access to different areas depending on the weather and time of day.

Great points!

I had to be very careful siting the broody breaker in the run so I didn't leave Cordon without means of getting out of direct sun and could provide shelter from expected rain (which has now, alas, vanished from our forecast in a very dry spring that has followed a very wet winter).

I find it much easier to avoid problems than fix them.

This may be what the entire thing boils down to.

 

[3KillerBs]

The compiled list so far:

Flexibility (unexpected additions, room to separate problems, ???)​

Rooster​

Integration​

Severe climate​

Breed characteristics, some are more active than others​

Sanitation​

Not over-grazing​

Broody hens​

Flock replacement​

Easier to work in​

Preventing problems so that you won't have to fix them later.​

Any comments/additions?

 

[Ridgerunner]

You might want to reread the article in my signature. It's not copyrighted so feel free to use anything in it. You don't need to give credit, it's out for the general public.

The three general things I normally mention are that I get fewer behavioral problems, don't have to work as hard, and have more flexibility to deal with problems that show up if I have more room.

An example of behavioral problems. A typical way chickens resolve conflict is the weaker runs away and avoids contact with the stronger. If they don't have room to get away or avoid to start with what would otherwise be a minor skirmish can turn into a serious fight. That's more avoiding problems.

Maybe broody hens raising chicks fall into this. My problem is not so much that Mama can't take care of her chicks if it is a bit tight, though mine tend to keep their chicks separated when the chicks are young. My issues are more after Mama weans them and leaves them alone to make their way with the flock. They no longer have Mama's protection so have to rely on themselves to avoid the adults and get away. Mama may have spent a few weeks teaching the other chickens to leave her babies alone but after they are weaned if they invade another hen's personal space it can get nasty. You can get the same a effect with brooder-raised chicks. The look but don't touch may get the adults used to them but the more room they have to avoid the adults the easier it usually is.

The work as hard usually comes to poop management. The tighter they are the more they poop in a small area so the poop builds up fast. That's already been discussed some.

Flexibility is my favorite. Say you need to isolate a chicken in a predator proof area. Could be an injured chicken or maybe two are fighting. If you have room in your coop you can set a crate in there or build a quick shelter. If your coop isn't that big you can't do it. Say a predator starts picking off a chicken a day. If you free range your coop/run needs to be big enough you can protect them in there while you deal with the predator or leave them locked in there for a few weeks and the predator moves on. I've done that. Or you have a predator getting into your run or you just need to lock your chickens in the coop only while dealing with the run. Is your coop big enough to do that? If you wake up to a problem can you lock them somewhere so you can deal with it after you get home from work instead of taking a day off? Say you need a broody buster, can you rig one up in a predator safe area? If you are integrating juveniles do you have room to put in a juvenile roost so they don't sleep in your nests?

Hopefully you can get something out of this that you can use. And give a link to that article when you finish it. If you want someone to proof read it let me know.

 

[3KillerBs]

You might want to reread the article in my signature. It's not copyrighted so feel free to use anything in it. You don't need to give credit, it's out for the general public.

I already have your article linked in the the draft. It was one of the first things I thought of as a resource when I had this idea.

My main thing with this article is that I'm going to illustrate what the space looks like -- using common household objects so that people who have never had chickens can visualize things. For example, my bathmat is 4.5 square feet and the tub/shower combination in the boys' bathroom is 10 square feet. That should make a handy visual for people to think about when standing in front of a prefab coop at TSC.

I'm also going to work out the math and use photos of me standing in front of various sheds on my property to illustrate what appropriate sizes for different sizes of flock looks like.

Hopefully you can get something out of this that you can use. And give a link to that article when you finish it. If you want someone to proof read it let me know.

I certainly will do so!

 

[elmo]

Ask if anyone ever regretted having extra space. I bet you won't find many stories.

On the other hand, if you ask if anyone ever wishes they had built their coop/run larger.....

 

[saysfaa]

...My main thing with this article is that I'm going to illustrate what the space looks like -- using common household objects so that people who have never had chickens can visualize things.
...

Great idea! Especially with the itty bitty chicks looking so small not far away.

When I worked appliance customer service, we were taught to use a basketball to visualize a cubic foot.

That might work for giving a rough idea of how much space each chicken takes up before stretching wings or neck or moving about. Maybe something smaller for bantams and larger for giant breeds.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-rough-height-guide-for-hens.722166/