Your opinions on my coop please!

[Nadilli]

Hi there! (Located in SE New Mexico)

First off, there are currently 8 CHICKS in this coop, soon to be 4, I bought extra so that I could pick which I wanted. I wanted female only silkies/bantys/bantums, but they where unsexed so I got 3 silkies and one banty, sexed them the best I could and hoped for the best; and I got 4 gold sex-link pullets for "backup". They are now 8 weeks old and it looks like I got pretty lucky, only one male silkie and the rest are female, so keeping one gold sex-link.
So, the coop will be housing 4 girls: 2 silkies, 1 banty, and one gold sex-link.

Now that thats out of the way, heres the coop! Modified from Tractor Supply I added an extra run from a critter cage that I am not using. (ps got the coop on sale)
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...IyvPPTARPamm4dimyG610iS59ltGt9ogaAk42EALw_wcB

Extension: 44 L x 34 W x 22 T inches
121 inches total length

It will be reinforced, along with the bottom being lined outside with brick, and the addition being more securely fixed once it is moved to its permanent location.

I am thinking of getting some parrot toys for them to put in.

The food and water gravity feeders are under the coop, and not in the picture.

And thinking about some sort of ventilation or putting in a fan. I have an indoor and outdoor thermometer and have the outside in the coop to monitor.

Thank you! Any comments welcome, good or bad, Id love to improve if I am able to (financially)

 

[rosemarythyme]

Ventilation will be your biggest need. I'd highly suggest looking at replacing the coop wall facing into the run with wire mesh, to provide a lot more ventilation that's protected by the roof.

Is that run extension going to be part of the permanent set up? How large is that? Other than coop ventilation, the small size of the run is my other main concern. You should consider reinforcing it with hardware cloth no larger than 1/2" to keep rats, snakes, etc. out, and apron it out at least 12" (18-24" would be better) to prevent predators from digging in.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Oh and axe the parrot toys - they're not parrots. Chickens would rather have a pile of dried leaves or hay to dig through, perches to hop up on, clutter to go up and down and around (hence the run being an issue, you don't have space to add much clutter, if at all).

 

[3KillerBs]

Looks good.

If the chickens have access to the ground in the run there's no need to make a dust bath for them. They'll happily dig their own holes. Then a few days later they'll dig new holes somewhere else.

 

[Nadilli]

The first egg! Gold sex link laid it, she’s a week younger than the clock, so almost 19 weeks old.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Thank you, I have a bucket that I will fill with sand for them. Would children's play sand work?

How big is the bucket? For a dust bath chickens would generally prefer something low and wide, like an old tire, a children's sandbox, etc. - it's a social activity so they'd prefer if multiple birds could fit in at once, so they can all bathe together.

Not sure on the children's play sand, as I don't use sand at all. I know people have a lot of opinions on what type of sand is best, so hopefully someone weighs in on that.

Yeah, I wasnt sure about the water, but it was an idea since its can get sooo hot here and wild birds like baths.

They will need help to deal with heat: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

As I generally don't get very hot weather, I'll put out "foot baths" for my chickens (large clay planter saucers filled with cool water) so they can soak their feet and cool down. The saucers are ideal for me because they're too heavy to flip over, are very shallow for safety, and offer good traction so birds don't slip when standing in it.

 

[rosemarythyme]

14 x 17 x 7 deep is the container that i was planning on using for a dust bath.

Probably not big enough, but if you already have it you might as well try it. The birds will let you know if they approve.

 

[Nadilli]

A little update! I reworked my flock, and made a large waterer for them, and calculated sq feet needed compared to what I have.
10 2 banty
20 2 ISA browns
50 5 ducks
which comes to...
80 total recommended/needed...
and I have 245 total area available, run floor space not counting 2nd stories with toys...
Which gives the birds over tipple what is recommended for them!
I finally got it all winterized, with straw everywhere, suet blocks up, soaked grains, and the heater in the waterer. I will attach pictures of the waterer in the next post.
I also have a tarp over 1/3 of the new extension, over the part that the coop and 5 gallon free feeder is under.

 

[Raptor Chicken]

I don't mean to rain on your parade but I bought that exact same coop from TSC along with six chick's, because thats what the specifications said on the box, and found out pretty quick how poor that coop is, in terms of space.

The actual coop is barely adequate for 2 birds. You have made a magnificent run for them but that doesn't make up for the inadequate home they have to go to at night, and in the colder months will spend most of their time in.

Dont get me wrong as I can absolutely relate, I bought the same coop initially. But you're doing a great disservice to your flock of 4 by keeping them in that space.

I ultimately ended up building my own walk in coop and things are much better.

 

[Lemon-Drop]

Awesome! Generally, I probably would have built a coop my self, but if that wasn’t an option, this *should* work. You will want, for 4 chickens, 16’ in the coop (total) so you would want a 4’ by 4’ coop, or something similar. and 40’ in the run. (Total) (it could be something like a 4’ by 10’ run) those are minimum requirements. More space is usually better, and chicken math is real.

I’m not sure about parrot toys... chickens will easily dirty them up, and, chickens are chickens, not parrots. re’s some ideas of what I did to accessorize my coop and run. Only problem with a few of these ideas is that I have a 750 sq’ run and a 8’ by 6’ coop... much bigger than your area (I also have 13 chickens)

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/run-clutter-and-coop-‘extras’.76527/

Of course, parrot toys would work ok, I’m just not sure if they would be great for the chickens. Some other ideas are hanging bunches of lettuce for them to jump and peck at when they are older.

You will also probably want to add a lot more ventilation, open 24/7/ year round. Recommended is 1 sq food per bird in the coop.

Also, I’m not sure where the roosts are located. Are they on the bottoms, or near the roof? If possible, make the roosts as close to the ceiling as possible.

Do you have the dimensions of the coop (house) and the dimensions of just the run? That would be helpful for me.

I don’t know a ton about pre fabs, but modifications are usually required.

You may also want to upgrade the locks, as you probably don’t want raccoons to be able to get in. Here’s an article on predator proofing a coop.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/top-10-ways-to-protect-your-chickens-from-predators.76540/

This is a lot of information, but I hope it helps!