I'm planning on building a coop for a flock of (what will be) probably between 5 and 10 hens. In the winter, overnight low temperatures here (Vermont) are somtimes below zero Fahrenheit, and can occasionally get as low as minus 20 F.
I've seen the advice to err on the side of making coop on the large side, and it makes sense, but what is the ideal coop size if it gets very cold? Can a coop be too large for the flock to warm with body heat? I've noticed that when it is warm, the birds will tend to spread out in the coop at night (and split up to use both the small and the large tractor), but in mid-winter, they tend to stay close together and will even sleep two (or three!) crawled together into one nesting box! (Note: when it gets that cold, the droppings freeze, so it is easy to remove them from bedding, and they stop sleeping there in the spring, so it's not a big problem.)
Another issue is that my current hens seem very pecking-order-conscious about roosting bars, and usually will only share with another hen from the same brood (i.e., reared together as chicks), so in the new coop I'll be trying to have multiple short roosting bars instead of just a couple of long ones. What is others' experience with this?
I've seen the advice to err on the side of making coop on the large side, and it makes sense, but what is the ideal coop size if it gets very cold? Can a coop be too large for the flock to warm with body heat? I've noticed that when it is warm, the birds will tend to spread out in the coop at night (and split up to use both the small and the large tractor), but in mid-winter, they tend to stay close together and will even sleep two (or three!) crawled together into one nesting box! (Note: when it gets that cold, the droppings freeze, so it is easy to remove them from bedding, and they stop sleeping there in the spring, so it's not a big problem.)
Another issue is that my current hens seem very pecking-order-conscious about roosting bars, and usually will only share with another hen from the same brood (i.e., reared together as chicks), so in the new coop I'll be trying to have multiple short roosting bars instead of just a couple of long ones. What is others' experience with this?