Crossposted using Lemmit.

Original post from /r/homesteading by /u/turbomacncheese on 2023-07-04 17:06:19+00:00.

Splitting up my chicken yard so I can add two more breeds (brahma and delaware) and they’re going to need new coops. The splits are about 20ft wide, 50ft long. Each will be home to initially 20 unsexed birds, surplus roosters will go to freezer camp before new birds are hatched. I don’t imagine having more than 50 of either at any one time. I’m south of Phoenix, so the temps get pretty miserable in the summer, and reach run will have several shades. All that said, which would you prefer and why? The smaller coop has the advantage that I can build a couple now and a couple later when it’s cooler out. I can also line them up east to west so they shade each other a little. A square coop seems like it might stay cooler in the middle of the day, though. Any idea whether that’s true?

EDIT: It was pointed out that chickens will tend to all sleep in one coop, so having two is likely a fail waiting to happen. With no advantage, I’m going to build them so one wall is easily removable and I can put a second one up against it later IF I need to. So then, does a long coop (say 16x5) have any advantage or deficiency compared to a square coop of similar square footage?