building a new chicken coop ( help )

[Anonymous]

Hi all

I plan to build a chicken coop now to be ready for spring laying hens and i have a question that i would like someone to anwser.

how many hens can i keep in a coop ( 20 feet by 12) and a run (60 feet by 45feet) an estimate would be nice.

thanks.

I want to keep about 50 hens but i dont know if i can.

p.s i have kept chickens before (1 year ago) but neighbors complaints and lack of experiance made me stop keeping chickens. but now i feel i should bring them back and have a second chance at keeping chickens ( they were absolutley brillant and give me a lot of fun especialy my funny cockeral) neighbors problem was the cockeral and chickens jumping into his garden and destroying his dear plants but now i plan to raise the fence (to stop chickens jumping into his garden) and not keep any cockerals.

i was very upset about losing the chickens

 

[darkbrowneggs]

Hi there - 50 chickens is a lot to keep. Are you sure you need that many all at once.

You can certainly get them into a space that size, after all they have been keeping 3 and 4 hens in battery cages for years, but if you are interested in their quality of life might it be better to build your run and maybe get 6 or 10 and see how you get on with those, and if you cope well gradually increase their numbers.

Don't forget also that 50 hens will eat a lot of food which is quite expensive to buy these days, and unless you are going into it to make money (which you will be unlikely to do and this is from a lifetime of being involved with hens) you will not need that many.

I am sure others will have ideas on this and will be along with further advice shortly

All the best
Sue

 

[ncotb]

Agree with darkbrowneggs, start off small & as you gain more experience you will want to add more anyway. How many did you have before? i dont think I would have managed initially if I had got more than 5 -

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the advice and I agree with you.

 

[Blue]

if you have more than 49 birds then you HAVE to register with DEFRA.

I'd advise starting abit slower and then building up the flock as you become moer experienced & aware of the costs, time, potential problems

(sorry if that sounds abit preachy, I dont mean to!)

we started out with 6 hens... and now have approaching 40 including hens, quail & ducks, so I am speaking from experience.


are you planning to fence the top of the run? this will help keep the hens in & the foxes out!
if you make an access door (or two) as well, for emergency or cleaning out.

 

[karlooben]

i would not keep 50 hens unless i turly had the turnout for them let alone the housing , i would suggest that you satrt of maybe 5 - 10 birds max , if had a lack of expeirence last time then you will still have it so your best to start of very small if you did get 50 and for some unknown reason you had to give them up rehoming could be tricky and also you have illnesses to contend with treating about 10 birds of less is far easier then treating a larger number .

i got my girls 3 years ago now i think { hehehe lost track } and i had never ever touched a chicken alone keep one but like a silly prat that i am i jumped in and got 14 ex batts in one go sometimes i regrett it sometimes i dont now i am up to 20 birds but 26 is the highest amount i have ever had but i wil never go above that amount .

sorry forgot to add if you start of small then get yourself a 6'4 shed they are pretty cheap and very easy to adjust to make into a coop all you will need is some home made nesting boxes and 2 perches i was going to make my own housing had the plans in my head etc until i worked out thhe cost about £200 to build my own with 8'4 ply sheets compared to £120 for a 6'4 shed.

 

[elmwood]

Hi,

Yikes - 50 hens!!!

Can you imagine the racket they will make after laying- Ours girls "celebration call" really worried me with our neighbours last Summer. its almost been a relief for them to have a few months off laying. (Maybe I have got exceptionally noisy chickens). I think everyones advice is from experience and well-intended.

So have your neighbours moved on?..... If not then no doubt they will not be best pleased when they see any garden action....i.e. erecting houses, runs etc. Maybe its worth either having a word, to pave the way or if not on great terms writing a short note explaining the plans.

I would hate for you to have go through the loss of your hens again. I can only imagine how you must have felt. As you say they are truly comical, brighten up the worst of days, and their unfailing trust in us non feathered carers, makes us feel very special and wanted......

I can hear you saying- "its nothing to do with the neighbours, :x but believe me after a summer of our neighbours dog jumping over our fence- I would kill it !!!!! Fortunately our neighbours have now sold their house, and fingers crossed moving on.......

Also, you may find as you get to know their personalities, fall in love with them etc.... you mights want to introduce a different breed. We started with 3 pekins last Feb Feb, had a D'Uccle in March, then April a sablepoot.....Wouldn't be without any of them....... and hoping to get 2 more of something or other this spring, now I have the experience to deal with the regular problems that crop up....

Let us know what you decide, and what hens you have plus piccy's......

 

[Anonymous]

Hello! Plus if you introduce new chickens in stages your egg production will be longer in that if you have 50 the same age - they will all stop laying at a similar age. Perhaps 5 or 6 every six months so that your not thrown in at the deep end?

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks everybody and I will update you on the subject.(including pics if i can)

everybody is really freindly here on this forum and you are all pretty helpfull.

Thanks