Almost New chicken Mom!

[stormylady]

Hi everyone, I'm getting my new babies in Feb. and need all the advice i can get! I have a coop and Henhouse Design but have no Idea if it will be big enough to house 25 hens! the floor size is 8 feet long and 6 feet wide and about 4 ft. tall from the floor to the top inside! is that enough room also the pen will be 10 ft by 20 ft.! of yard space for them to run around in! Also i probably won't be able to keep all 25 girls but had to order that many min. Please help me. Thanks in advance. Stormylady (Old lady with a new Hobby... lol.)

 

[The Chicken Lady]

to BYC!

This is definitely the best place to get all your chicken questions answered! Glad to have you as a member!

It sounds like you have a 48 square foot coop, so with 25 chickens, that would be less than two square feet of space per bird. That's a bit small, but there is some give-and-take with that depending on the size of the chickens you ordered. Did you choose standard or bantam breeds?

The run sounds excellent. Chickens love to roam outdoors, and if they have a large run, they can skulk about without being attacked by predators. Is your run covered?

 

[Mahonri]

That's a little crowded.... double the size of the coop and you could have 30.

 

[FractalFarmer]

The thing I most hate about our coops is that I can't go inside! They are about 4' high, same as yours, so I have to send my kids in to clean the back corners. I read here that the most common regret for coop design is "too small", and I agree. Bigger is better if you can swing it, IMO. Especially consider how you will access it for cleaning, etc..

We have 3 small coops; one we bought, one we made from scratch, and another we converted from a shipping container. All of them are about 4'x6-8' x 4' high. As we add chickens, we add coops! I would much rather have one big one instead.

 

[stormylady]

Thanks for the great input everyone. I kept reading about space and there were so many different opinions i could hardly make sense of it all. And all of the chicken are standard size, there are several Delawares, australorpes, Dominex (spelled that wrong for sure) but im sure you got it oh and Americanas or Araucanas?
not sure what the difference is. Also I had to get 2 cochins and 2 Orpingtons cause i had heard nothing but good things about them. And yes the run is enclosed with netting over the top . Actually the run is a converted dog pen, but has Hard ware cloth all the way around the out side of the chainlink fence and curtained down and folded out about a foot. I read i think here that it would keep preditors from digging underneath the pen? Hope it works! And i think some of the chickens will have to be rehomed as i wasnt planning on that many but you had to order at least 25. As far as the house goes it s two levels and the bottom is a solid 6 by 8 foot board with a 4 by six foot whole cut out of it and covered with hardware cloth also the roosts will sit over it and the piece of cut out board will be used in the winter to cover the hole but i figured that it would make for easier cleaning in the summer and spring at least with the little chicken poo falling out the bottom. also there are two windows and one whole side of the house opens up with double doors, also for cleaning purposes.
Any comments more that welcome infact encouraged! cause im chicken Iliterate!LOL
Sorry so long but maybe i should tell you alittle about me, Im an older women, 3 grown sons, 3 toy poodles, 1 teacup poodle , 2 labs, 18 year old mix dog, 3 ferrets and a partridge in a pear tree, I don't really have a partridge but it just went to well with the list i couldn't resist. Anyway you all seem so knowlegable about chickens and alot more , I got so exited when every one was getting there first eggs. I just know i have found the perfect place for advice! And some new friends thanks all.

 

[stormylady]

Also I forgot to add that i also read that chickens love to dust bathe so i put a sand box underneath the house and put D.E. in it for them. Is that good or should i add just regular sand or dirt with it? Id really love to have everything in place when the chicks get here.
thanks again Stormy.

 

[Jena]

Welcome Stormylady,

I am coming to this later as well, actually coming back to raising chickens the way I lived as a small child.

The advice you get here is brilliant, and lots of new friends.

My sons are also grown up and gone, chickens are my new generation. lol.

Good luck to you, it sounds like you have put a great deal of though into your coup and run, and I am sure it will work out for you.

Wecome and enjoy,

Jena.

 

[stormylady]

Thank you Jena! And All the best to you too! Im sure trying. Ive been doing alot of reading (here mostly) but other places too. And I just know that there will be 45 things that i didn't think of after the little ones get here! I just want them to be happy healthy and hopefully productive! And Im starting from scratch ( no pun intended) but i have absolutely no Idea what Im doing ! But Im so giddy with the thought of this new adventure, hearing all the stories about the people with there little feathered friends! Ive owned alot of animals but never chickens. But as you've said with the help and advice from the good folks here everything will be fine. If i don't drive them away with my constant questions and more than likely bragging. Oh and Im very new to doing this site thing too so if i mess up somekinda way please let me know! Thanks and hope to talk to you again. stormy

 

[smom1976]

Oh how fun... Maybe you can aquire another dog kennel and attach it some how to the first one giving them more space.. That is a wonderful idea you have there..

Babies are sooo much fun...

 

[stormylady]

Hi SMOM,
thank you for the compliment its my first attempt at something like this, the pen is 20 ft by 10 ft and my yard is fenced in so they will have the run of the back yard while Im home and out side with them. Im not sure how much yard space 25 chickens need to be comfortable and happy. but other wise they will be in the pen. Any Ideas as to the size of the main pen should be? looking for all the advice i can get!
I keep thinking at least some of the chickens will have to be rehomed as that is quite a few. especially for a beginner like me but mostly for space sake. And the Hatchery said i had to order 25 chickens in order to ship them safely so aleast for a while there will be 25 oh and a bonus chick of some mystery breed! Any and all advice welcome. thanks so much!