7 week old chickens huddling

[skinnycatfish]

I am curious if it is normal behavior for my birds to be huddling together on the floor in the smallest of spaces at night. They have a lovely coop with two big windows and it seems that they are trying to get as far from the windows as possible. They don't roost, they crowd together on the floor right in front of the door. Is it possible that they dislike the windows? The coop is not drafty and it makes no difference whether their heat lamp is left on or not, so I don't think that it is temp. related. Same spot every night.
Just basically wondering if we have made a mistake by putting two big windows on either side of the coop on the end where their roosts are. Anyone seen the same behavior?

 

[ace6175]

Mine did that too when I first moved them into the coop. After awhile, they figured out how to roost.

 

[TipsyDog]

Pick them up when it's almost dark and set them on the roost. You can do that a few nights and they may begin to get the idea. Mine roost in front of a window with no problems. Maybe a coon was looking in and scared them?

 

[TipsyDog]

Another thought - be sure your coop is secure. Anything getting in there may scare your birds - mice, rats, etc.

And

!!

 

[elmo]

You could try putting a curtain over the window at night and see if that helps.

Our doves' roost was right above a window and they got spooked by trees moving in the wind right outside the window until I began covering up the window at night.

 

[basicliving]

Hi and

!

I think it just takes a while for young chicks to get the idea about roosting. Some of my mamas get their babies up on the roost at 3 - 4 weeks old, but most sleep on the floor with them until they are around 2 months old or so.

Before moving them to the coop, I'm sure your chicks were used to sleeping huddled together - it will probably just take a little while for them to figure out they should be roosting intead! You can pick them each up and set on the roosts at dark if you want, but I usually just let them do it on their own terms, and it doesn't last too long.

 

[staceyl]

When I first moved mine to the coop they slept in one of the nesting boxes all huddled together. Eventually they moved to the roost all on their own, and well before they started laying. So I wouldn't worry about it.