How many chickens can I have in coop

[Quacking ducks]

Hi i have a 4x8x8 coop and I was wondering how many chickens I can have in the coop?

 

[Tookie]

8 at the max.

 

[Quacking ducks]

8 at the max.

I thought you can have more chickens in a smaller house because they roost

 

[NatJ]

Hi i have a 4x8x8 coop and I was wondering how many chickens I can have in the coop?

Measure the actual floor space where the chickens can walk around (the area not covered by nestboxes, waterer, etc.)

Figure 4 square feet per chicken.

I would guess about 6 chickens (24 square feet of space), but that is based on a guess of how much space is being covered by the nestboxes and the waterer. Measuring it will be more accurate.

 

[NatJ]

I thought you can have more chickens in a smaller house because they roost

At night, yes they roost.
But in the daytime when they are awake they spend a lot of their time on the floor, so they do need plenty of space there.

Some people manage with less space per chicken, and some people find that their chickens need more space. 4 square feet per chicken is a basic number that works in many cases.

Having too many chickens for the space makes them more likely to pick at each other, and they can cause serious injury or even kill each other.

Having too many chickens also means you need to clean more often, because of how much manure each chicken makes.

 

[Quacking ducks]

Measure the actual floor space where the chickens can walk around (the area not covered by nestboxes, waterer, etc.)

Figure 4 square feet per chicken.

I would guess about 6 chickens (24 square feet of space), but that is based on a guess of how much space is being covered by the nestboxes and the waterer. Measuring it will be more accurate.

6ftx3ft

 

[Quacking ducks]

At night, yes they roost.
But in the daytime when they are awake they spend a lot of their time on the floor, so they do need plenty of space there.

Some people manage with less space per chicken, and some people find that their chickens need more space. 4 square feet per chicken is a basic number that works in many cases.

Having too many chickens for the space makes them more likely to pick at each other, and they can cause serious injury or even kill each other.

Having too many chickens also means you need to clean more often, because of how much manure each chicken makes.

The coop is mainly just for them at night, during the day they’re in a run with the ducks

 

[NatJ]

6ftx3ft

That makes 18 square feet, so I would only plan on 4 hens in that space.

The coop is mainly just for them at night, during the day they’re in a run with the ducks

If you are able to leave the door open, so they can go outside as soon as they wake up, you can probably have more hens that sleep/nest in that space. (i.e. more than the 4 I estimated above.)

But many people shut their hens in at night and in bad weather, and they stay in until the person gets up in the morning or until the person decides the weather is better. Or the hens keep themselves inside during bad weather (many chickens refuse to walk on snow.)

So the common guidelines (4 square feet per chicken) are based on chickens that often do have to stay inside while they are awake.

 

[Quacking ducks]

That makes 18 square feet, so I would only plan on 4 hens in that space.


If you are able to leave the door open, so they can go outside as soon as they wake up, you can probably have more hens that sleep/nest in that space.

But many people shut their hens in at night and in bad weather, and they stay in until the person gets up in the morning or until the person decides the weather is better. Or the hens keep themselves inside during bad weather (many chickens refuse to walk on snow.)

So the common guidelines (4 square feet per chicken) are based on chickens that often do have to stay inside while they are awake.

I don’t put the chickens in the bad weather unless it’s supposed to be really bad because I have plastic sheeting over the roof. lately I don’t normally put them in until it’s dark and I get them out around 7 or 8 in the morning. During the day the coop door is open so they can go in and out as they please

 

[NatJ]

I don’t put the chickens in the bad weather unless it’s supposed to be really bad because I have plastic sheeting over the roof. lately I don’t normally put them in until it’s dark and I get them out around 7 or 8 in the morning

Since you already have chickens, you can make a judgement based on how they are actually doing. That's the best way to learn what works (or does not work) about your own specific situation, with your own specific chickens.

If you are thinking of adding chickens, be aware that they need more space per chicken for the first few weeks or months, because they often want to keep space between the old chickens and the new chickens, and because one group or the other may get bullied. A group that already gets along well does not need the extra space (or at least not as badly.)