Chicken coop questions

NS Gearhead · Feb 29, 2016

So, I've decided my next project shall be a coop. But first a couple of questions;

-how many square feet per bird? (I'd like to have 12 meat kings)
-what needs to be inside the enclosure? Perches?
-should I insulate the enclosure?
-what about ventilation?

I've got a new trailer axle from a project that never happened, and wanting this to be mobile, the plan is to build it like a trailer. Maybe 5X12, with the enclosure 5X6, 2' above the floor so the run is the full 5x12. I guess I'd like the option to let them out during the day, or keep them in. Oh, that brings me to another question; should the run be covered?... from the sun & rain. I think they take 3 or 4 months from chick to slaughter, so this year the goal is one dozen, and if it goes well maybe to a dozen twice back to back.

Thanks in advance for the advice! I'm excited to start my little hobby farm.

TSO · Feb 29, 2016

Are you just wanting to raise meat birds, or egg layers?

murphy1244 · Feb 29, 2016

TSO said:
Are you just wanting to raise meat birds, or egg layers?

" I think they take 3 or 4 months from chick to slaughter"

TSO · Feb 29, 2016

Ah thx...

Ok, here's the thing. Chickens are messy. Meat birds are disgustingly messy. They like to eat, crap, and sleep (and nothing else). Sometimes they are so lazy that they sleep on top of eachother and suffocate eachother to death. Not exaggerating. We raise several hundred meat birds each year. We also have kept a flock of layers for a number of years.

Coops are for layers.

For meat birds, build a portable enclosure that is only about 2 ft high, protected on all sides, open on the bottom, with access doors on top. Lookup "chicken tractor" images on Google. I would snap pics of mine, but I think they are still covered in snow.

I've modified my designs over the years. Key is to make them light enough to easily move around. You'll want to keep them on grass (shorter the better), and move it twice a day (morning and night) so they have fresh grass.

My tractors now are 5'x10' so 50 sq/ft. The number of birds depends on breed. If we are raising Cornish Cross, which take 7-9 weeks, we will do up to 32 in each tractor, because these birds barely move. If we're raising more of a Heritage Breed, our favorite is Freedom Rangers, then we will do up to 25 birds in each tractor. These take 9-11 weeks and they move around a lot more.

sea2summit · Feb 29, 2016

I build 4x8 screen and roof panels and add/subtract/split as needed based on the age and number of birds. Just tie the panels together and keep it 8' wide so the roof panel can span it. Also easy to trear down and throw behind the shed until next summer.

NS Gearhead · Feb 29, 2016

TSO said:
For meat birds, build a portable enclosure that is only about 2 ft high, protected on all sides, open on the bottom, with access doors on top. Lookup "chicken tractor" images on Google. I would snap pics of mine, but I think they are still covered in snow.

I've modified my designs over the years. Key is to make them light enough to easily move around. You'll want to keep them on grass (shorter the better), and move it twice a day (morning and night) so they have fresh grass.
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Ok, so do they get enough food from the lawn with this method?

NS Gearhead · Feb 29, 2016

sea2summit said:
I build 4x8 screen and roof panels and add/subtract/split as needed based on the age and number of birds. Just tie the panels together and keep it 8' wide so the roof panel can span it. Also easy to trear down and throw behind the shed until next summer.

Your footprint is 4x8? Got a pic?

TSO · Feb 29, 2016

NS Gearhead said:
Ok, so do they get enough food from the lawn with this method?

They will eat a little bit of the grass/weeds/bugs ... But we feed them an organic feed for meat birds. They are too lazy to survive off grazing. They'd probably die of starvation. Wish I was joking but it's true.

Ford850 · Feb 29, 2016

TSO has nailed it. Raising meat birds is not a glamorous thing. It's not like what most think of when they picture chickens, coops, grazing, layers, etc.

TSO · Feb 29, 2016

These are the four current ones we use, but the latest one (showcased) is the best and is the one we'll model all future ones after.

Go figure, is the simplest. That's how it usually works out, simple is best. We tried all kinds of different water solutions. Ultimately, we use 2 gallon chicken waters and set them on the ground. By the time the tractors are ready to be moved, they are empty. We just throw a few 5-gal buckets in the gator and fill them that way since these are out at pasture.

These are light, strong, safe, and easy. Easy also for removing birds when their time is up.

NS Gearhead · Feb 29, 2016

Very interesting! So there's no bottom... Do the birds stay in when you move them?

Meat Kings can get up to 12lbs each, so would 5X10 be enough for 12?

TSO · Feb 29, 2016

Yup empty bottom. You pickup one side and drag it forward. They learn to walk with the movement (which is only the length of the tractor). Occasionally, when they are young and small, you might get one that squeezes out while moving, but that's rare and they're easy to catch.

Just remember, there is a point of diminishing return on meat birds (similar to other livestock). Butchering them too early means you are missing out on potential meat volume, but butchering them too late also means that you are adding fat and letting the muscle mature beyond the likely desired density... basically what I'm saying is that letting them get up to 12lbs is probably wasting feed and just gaining you bird weight that you likely won't get back once processed.

Granted I have not raised the breed you are stating, but the Freedom Rangers are pretty big birds compared to most, and even at 10 weeks, the processed weight (finished, ready to eat) averages around 5-6lbs.

Don't get caught up in getting a huge bird.

NS Gearhead · Feb 29, 2016

Yeah I understand. I've been chatting up a guy at work that had a hobby farm. He said pigs should be harvested at around 200lbs. After that they just add fat.

Anyway, a little reading for ya;

"Thanks to careful genetic selection, Canada's commercial chickens have enormous breasts, twice as big as the ones they had in the '70s. Comercial white broiler chickens, often called Meat Kings, can grow twice as large and as quickly as the '50s chicken, reaching slaughter size in six weeks. They're a cross between White Plymouth Rock or New Hampshire hens and Cornish roosters."

TSO · Feb 29, 2016

Yeah we usually butcher our hogs around 275 lbs, and they are still very lean. We end up getting around 150lbs of finished product per hog at that weight.

Looking into the "meat king" it looks like a Cornish Cross. Very typical meat bird. If you keep them 12 weeks you'll probably get about 6-7 lbs finish-processed weight. But their mortality rate dips quite a bit as the age. They will suffer broken legs and heart attacks. Their legs, even though they are grotesquely thick, don't support the weight well. And their hearts can't keep up with their growth rate.

Of course you'll still get 75-85% survival rate at that age.

If you choose a Heritage Breed, like a Jersey Giant, Freedom Ranger, etc... They are genetically more viable and you can age them.

With the Cornish Cross, you'll find that you'll want to process them at 8 weeks. Averages finish-processed weight will be around 5 lbs.

aarolar · Feb 29, 2016

What's involved in butchering chickens I have considered it several times but it's my understanding it's a pretty messy job. As of now all our red meat is deer and most of our veggies are home grown I would love to get away from store bought white meat too.