Funny Chicken Stories

I am new to chicken keeping but have so much enjoyed the 8 girls we have. They have been such entertainment for the me, my daughter, and my 3 grandchildren. We all live together so all are involved in our new venture in life. I bought my chicks from mypetchicken.com and all arrived safely and alive. They hatched April 7 this year. In June, we moved out of our home into a hotel for a few days and then 2 temporary vacation rental homes while waiting to close on our new home. What an ordeal that was considering the chicks were in a brooder and then a small portable coop which we moved from place to place with 'make shift' run areas in order to keep them 'out of sight'. They have tolerated us well thus far. LOL I contracted a carpenter to build my 'Taj Mahal' of chicken coops and he quit in the middle of his project due to personal home issues. So.....I bought a used coop which I have thoroughly cleaned and sanitized and then thoroughly cleaned and sanitized again. Got them all set up in a much larger chicken coop (took 3 men to move it) than their small portable coop and they now have a secure run area with room to roam until I repair/replace some fencing at the new house to ensure they don't get into the neighbors yard and I find someone to complete the Taj Mahal. I will eventually need both coops because I contracted chicken fever and now have 6 more chicks along with 4 guineas and I will definitely need both coops. That flock is still in their brooder but will need to come out soon.

My funny story is that I got the original chicks in their new coop with 5 nesting boxes, a 6 X 8 floor space, 4 ft high. Moving them into their new digs was quite the ordeal as they kept running out before we could get the door closed behind each one and we had to chase them (we added the run area after we got them in there). Then, first night in their new coop.....they all literally piled into one corner on top of each other as if that were the only space available to them. The coop is tighter than Fort Knox and nothing is getting in there but it is all open with just the fencing on one side with the door and I think they are intimidated by the lack of totally enclosed space. They have been in there now for a few days and are still in a pile each night so far. They are so funny! I think I will need to add a curtain to make them feel safer. LOL
It is actually not that unusual for chicks to pile into the corner in a new coop, if they are not in the habit of roosting in there. I bet if you take them from their pile and place them on the roost they will get used to roosting in there sooner.
 
It is actually not that unusual for chicks to pile into the corner in a new coop, if they are not in the habit of roosting in there. I bet if you take them from their pile and place them on the roost they will get used to roosting in there sooner.
Thanks for the info. I was worried that I had kept them cramped up for so long in the portable coop that they were going to be permanently 'damaged from the experience'' and stay 'together' no matter what! LOL I will put them on the roosts tonight and see if that makes a difference.
 
I went out to the coop one night to shut my girls up. As I closed the window it slipped from my hands and slammed on my fingers! I cried! Oh it hurt! But then my hen, Sunny, made a sound like "awwwww." My crying turned into laughter!!!
 
It is actually not that unusual for chicks to pile into the corner in a new coop, if they are not in the habit of roosting in there. I bet if you take them from their pile and place them on the roost they will get used to roosting in there sooner.
Just as an update of a sort, they are still sleeping in a pile. They have almost 6 feet of roost space. Last evening, it got rather cold for FL so I bought some straw bales to add to the coop for wind blockage and for their bedding. I did not get home until well after dark so was out in the coop moving pullets out of their pile, they complained constantly, added the straw to their usual pile place and bunched more straw up around it to block some of the wind. When I left the coop, they were in a pile under the nest boxes.
 

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