how many can i get?

[kev1744]

hi all,
brand new poster, and hopefully soon to be chicken owner

im in the process of building a chicken run and coop...run will be 12x12 foot 6 foot tall with nesting boxes inside.
can someone tell me how many chickens thats suitable for?
would be looking at getting ex batts.
hope someone can help...as ive got loads of questions to ask

[Nicos]

Hi there- and welcome to the Vine!

Sorry- can't help about the number of chooks as mine free range.
Are you growing your own veg too???

[MaureenHall]

How big is the coop going to be? Will this be inside or attached to the run? If it's attached and you're going to let the chickens out into the garden at times, then you should be able to house 6 comfortably

Welcome to the Vine, and welcome to the mad-house Mad people are always welcome!! (makes the rest of us feel at home)

[NSB]

the perch space has to be 9'' per bird according to defra.

[frias]

Welcome to the vine Kev. The run sounds OK for about 6 as long as they can free range sometimes. How many were you thinking of getting? You will need somewhere for them to sleep as well as nestboxes. Some ex-bats use the perches, some like mine never do.

[bluemoon]

I'd stick with six. The books will probably tell you some rule of thumb that will give you so many square feet per bird, but this tends to be at the maximum stocking density and your hens would be just as miserable as the poultry-farm ones. For me the whole point is to keep my chickens as contented as possible and know that the eggs come from happy hens. Put 'toys' in the run such as a large log to climb on, a sand-pit for dust bathing and somewhere for them to shelter from the sun without them having to go indoors (I've planted a couple of apple-trees beside the run for shade, but until these are well established I've resorted to a gaudy sea-side wind-break. Think about how you'll protect their feed from the rain too, we've built a small wooden 'bus-shelter' for the purpose. When all this stuff is in even a large run starts to resemble the aftermath of a riot in a playgroup and you realize you haven't as much space as you thought.

[lettucegrow!]

Agree with you bluemoon! They really like to roam about and it's not until you see them in action that you realise that that is how they spend most of their day.I've always had some sort of creature to care for and you want to give them the best possible life while in your care.Even more so with chooks-they're providing food!!!

[dozey1]

I have a run plus a garden shed of 22ft x 5ft x 6ft wide. I have four ex batts and they free range every afternoon for a couple of hours but as the others say i think 6 would be fare....