[Roughlee Handled]

andreadon this is not a funny matter or a point scoring game.  We are talking about animal welfare.  This forum suggests that there should be 2m squared per chicken.

We do not want people to over stock and make the same mistakes that you made last year.

we found that out after a particularly wet month last year! it was like living on the bog of eternal stench!!

[andreadon]

i'm not getting at any one, stuart!
I just don't want to sound like i'm being mardy - that's all.

obviously, we all care about animal welfare.

and it really did smell like the bog of eternal stench!!

[FRUITFULL]

As im new to the world of chickens i have alot to learn and have been reading up on run sizes etc.I looked around for different ideas and think alot of runs and houses are far to small even if theres only 2 chickens in them.
The picture on here from celt looks too small to me although its hard to judge size by piccies but wouldnt it be nice to have space for the chickens to hop up and perch on a nice piece of tree or something without hitting thier head and walk under something for cover without army crawling.
My run isnt big and i wish it was huge like some homes iv seen on here.But i feel comfortable that on a cold day they have shelter and a hot day they have basking space.
Also those little houses must get so hot!!
I think everyone needing advise should do what the experts say on here to keep their chickens happy as they are telling you how it should be done the correct way for happy chickens.

[Bruced]

As a recent veteran of the search for a commercially produced run that comes up to scratch (or even peck) I think the best bet is either DIY for a run or extend onto an exisiting one - I didn't find one run that I really thought did the job for 3 chicks or more. The worrying thing is that leaves my run extension to me and my appalling DIY skills

[andreadon]

commercially available-speaking, the best sized runs are those made for dogs - they're light and airy and high as well as large.

More expensive, of course, but they would work best if you're not very skilled at DIY.

And they are usually mounted on concrete bases which would make it ideal for fox protection.

[Bruced]

Never meant to hijack the post  but thanks for the tip!

[celtbhoy]

as for the plastic mesh, there will be no foxes around during the day(dogs next door) and for the roof/mud comment, its not finished yet, it will have a roof of some sort.