Coop run for free range hens?

[Breadhead]

If they have to stay in the coop during bad weather, they need the larger amount of space, and sometimes even more.

If they have to stay in the coop after they wake up in the morning, waiting for you to come open a door and let them out, they also need the larger amount of space.

Given how big Brahmas can grow, I would not try to shrink the space at all. The only reason they can get away without even MORE space is that they tend to be particularly calm and docile. (Hatchery-quality ones may not grow as big, but may not be as calm either, so it works out to about the same space needs either way.)


Do you have cold winters, with snow all over the ground for weeks or months at a time? If yes, you should either build a covered run, or plan on making your coop bigger because they will have to spend so much time indoors.

Chickens usually do not like to walk in the snow, and the snow covers all the interesting things on the ground so they have no reason to come outside at all. They don't like cold wind either.

A run with a roof can provide a snow-free area for the chickens to spend time outside the coop in the winter.

To make the run more pleasant during the winter, you also want to block wind coming in from the sides. That might already happen because of your house, the coop, a perimeter fence, trees, or whatever other things are already present on your property. Or you might want to put up tarps or big pieces of plastic on some sides of the run during the winter (but do not enclose it completely, because you want enough ventilation to keep it from getting stinky inside.)

Great feedback, thank you!
Our winters do get cold but from what I’ve read and heard from neighbors, it’s not cold enough to add heat lamps. Our snow days in Meridian is in spurts so we will have snow for 5 days max on the ground. In our area, we have about 6 snow days through winter (ball park).

Yes, I do plan on building the run with a roof.

 

[Breadhead]

The all day ranging everyday wont work out. They will be down the street digging up someones flower garden. Not a good situation. You can let them out a few hours before dusk for some ranging and that will save your lawn and keep them close to home.

With that in mind you want a large pen. Dogs and raccoon will be your major predators. The raccoon are night so as long as you lock up the coop every dusk you really only have to worry about dogs and that takes strong welded wire. The 2x4 inch welded wire fencing should suffice. You will want a roof on the run.

Go big with the run and small with the coop. There is no such thing as a 4 sqft per chicken rule. That is social media and not reality. Chickens will only go into the coop to lay eggs and roost if given a proper run. Humane coop area for large fowl is 2 sqft per bird. Count on a linear foot per bird for roosting. A 4x4 foot coop is all you need and put the nesting box outside for easy access to egg gathering. Cut 9x9 inch entrance to the nest with each nest being a square foot. This will encourage the girls to use it. Seven birds would need two nests.

Our subdivision has fences so neighbors dogs, sheep, horses, birds etc… stay in the yard, re: chickens running down the road. We never see livestock on city property unless they are being walked w/supervision like the heard of sheep that stroll.

I’ll look into that welded wire you mentioned and thank you for the door size. I actually found similar dimensions for Brahmas on this forum!

4x4 coop seems a little small but I am a new chicken owner. My absolute smallest I feel I should do is a 5x5 coop. I’ll play with run length this evening. The previous member has me thinking about actually using the run more, I might see how a 17-20’ run would fit.

 

[nuthatched]

Generally, make sure there is not so little room in a coop so that they cannot have a little wander, but if the coop is too big, they will not be able to warm the space properly.

Actually, they do not need to warm the space, the 'smaller coop is warmer' thing is a myth. Bigger is better and a proper ventilated coop will not be warmer.

 

[Breadhead]

This chicken run has me thinking, any experience with a run along the side of a house? Doing that would give them a roughly 5’x22’ that would add roughly 16’ of run to my fence. Roughly 40’ in length as I have a tree in the back corner of my yard.

Or is it a terrible idea

 

[NatJ]

There is no such thing as a 4 sqft per chicken rule. That is social media and not reality.

It is a "rule of thumb" or guideline, not an absolute rule.
And it was around long before social media (I know I've seen it in books published 30 to 50 years ago: just not sure of the exact dates.)

Chickens will only go into the coop to lay eggs and roost if given a proper run.

Apart from what constitutes a "proper run," time in the coop also varies by climate and by how the owner acts. For example, chickens will spend a lot of time inside the coop if they have a worried owner who shuts them inside frequently because of concerns with the weather, or an owner who leaves the chickens in the coop until several hours past sunup before opening the pop door. If the chickens have sufficient space in the coop, along with food and water, either of those situations is just fine. But chickens in those cases need a lot more coop space than chickens that wake up, go outside in the run, and don't come back in except for egg-laying and sleeping.

 

[StinkyAcres]

Bigger is always better for coop and run - better for their health, your health, and the health of the soil. And I'd recommend bigger nest boxes for Brahmas than what was recommended by Egghead_Jr. I think my 14" boxes are perfect for their large size. There is no need for small openings on the nest boxes, but some find doors or curtains help keep it darker which helps the chickens feel cozier and prevents egg eating. I also made my chicken pop door larger than what is normally recommended for standard chickens.

 

[StinkyAcres]

This chicken run has me thinking, any experience with a run along the side of a house? Doing that would give them a roughly 5’x22’ that would add roughly 16’ of run to my fence. Roughly 40’ in length as I have a tree in the back corner of my yard.

Or is it a terrible idea

I don't have experience with a run attached to the house, but you'll want to consider how you will maintain the run. Eventually, after all the grass is gone, you'll probably want bedding in the run. Bedding material, like coarse wood chips, prevents a muddy mess, keeps the chickens feet out or their own poop (for the most part), and helps compost the poop. To keep a run clean, you either have to clear out all the bedding every so often OR add bedding occasionally. The benefits of adding bedding is it's not as much work and you don't have to find a place to dump soiled bedding because it disintegrates into the ground. The downside is it can pile up and I don't know if you'd want that next to the house.

 

[StinkyAcres]

I edited my last post to make it clearer. My mind is not clear today.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Unless you already have the material on hand so it is free, most building materials come in 4' or 8' dimensions for the less expensive items. An 8' long 2x4 or a 4' x 8' sheet of plywood for example. When designing a coop it is often a good idea to take these dimensions into consideration. A 6' dimension isn't usually horrible, the cut-off can often be used to build nests or such.

Your roof needs to slope, both on the coop and the run so rainwater will run off. If water sets up there it will either leak or cause rot or corrosion, depending on materials. It is often a good idea to have some overhang. Coops need to be ventilated and under the overhang is a good place to have venting that is protected from rain or snow. So you might need an 8' width on a 6' wide roof.

How much room do you need? What a question! It depends on your individual chicken's personality and maybe size, your climate, and your management methods. Chickens don't recognize concepts like square feet in a coop versus square feet in a run. All they know is whether they have enough room or not, wherever it may be. If they are trapped in the coop only when they are awake because you locked them on there or the weather is too bad for them to go out, it doesn't matter if you have run space or not because it is not available. Beware of any hard and fast number rules, they depend on the circumstances. I've seen recommendations for anything between 1 sq ft per bird to 15 sq ft on this forum. If you have a predator-proof and weather-proof run and leave access all the time you don't need a lot of coop space. If you don't have that extra space available, you need more coop space. In Idaho you will have days when the wind or snow will keep them from free ranging outside.

I personally like to give them some extra room. You never know for sure how much room they really need, especially on a day when something unusual or unexpected happens. I'm not going to try to tell you how much room you need as it varies by so many different things. You'll probably have a less stressful experience if you give them some extra.

 

[aart]

4x4 coop seems a little small but I am a new chicken owner. My absolute smallest I feel I should do is a 5x5 coop.

Way too small for 7 birds, IMO.
Especially brahmas, they are big birds and not always docile.