Chickens roosting outside coop, 2° weather coming

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

Thanks! Insulation is a great idea. My previous flock always slept on the roost in the coop. When we got rid of them, I wanted to deep clean the coop and let it sit for a while before getting new birds as we had previously had a mouse problem in the coop. My mom who is also my neighbor and who I share the hens with got more birds before that could happen. This flock for whatever reason only go in the coop during the day to lay eggs and hang out some. lol. Here are some pics of the coop and the run. I think the roost is high enough since my last flock slept on it, but once they’ve all laid their eggs they don’t go back inside. The highest roosting pole in the run is the one they all sleep on at night. They use those 3 poles a lot. They slept out there all last winter and did fine so I let them be, but these temps coming up are colder than anything we normally have and I don’t know if they could handle that. They are still molting too.

Someone once suggested to another poster having a similar issue that it might be an issue with mites or mice or something else having made a home in the coop and the hens not liking to share a bed with them. (Mice scurry at night and the chickens can hear them but not see them if there is no light. The mites will come out at night and bite the hens.)

 

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

We have never physically put them in a coop, so maybe we should try that ?

Yup, and if you make a big show of bringing a bowl of a treat (like wet feed commonly referred to as "pudding" or "mash") they will catch on pretty fast that there is a treat if you go inside before it gets dark. They should go in when the sky starts to darken, usually an hour before sunset in order to claim the roost they want for the night. It is safer in the coop, that is where they should sleep. Windows or a small light inside can help so they see the inside of the coop. They don't see well in low light and are blind ii n the dark. (They see less than you do, your dog sees more than you do)

If one of mine is napping in the run and misses the time to go inside she often does not want to go in the coop after sunset, but if i turn on the light in the coop she will hurry in and dive into her supper before finding a bed.

I got them used to supper being served in the coop, I let the food bowl go empty in the late afternoon so supper is delicious ! Now everyone comes in the coop in the evening.

 

[pinkl72]

Well the Siberian cold front arrived last night with -25⁰ wind chill, sleet, and 40-60 mph wind. It was horrible. We lost power briefly and the wind did some damage with downed trees. When my significant other checked on them early this morning, the alpha rooster went in the wooden coop but the 2nd and 3rd ranked rooster and lowest ranking hen of that sub flock were on the outside of the coop so he took each one and gently tossed them into the entrance and they continued in. They and the rest of the flock stayed in the coop all day as far as I could tell and they were all in there at dusk. The weather will be below freezing tomorrow but not as windy and will get slightly above freezing Saturday. Hopefully they continue to use the coop from now on. Thank you for all the tips. I will be adding ventilation up high but am concerned about it causing too much draft on days like today. The ventilation could also add some light. The coop does have mice because I've seen one on the video monitor so I will try to address that too. Thanks again, it was really awesome to get so much helpful input.

 

[pinkl72]

An update: those chickens went back to roosting outside on the buckets the next night. One cold night a few weeks later, the quarantined rooster's light burnt out so we moved him to our fenced in backyard so we could keep a closer eye on him. Those chickens started roosting in the coop the night we moved him. I guess they stayed out there to be with him? He was a part of their original flock. He had a separate enclosure and shelter that sat away from both of the coops and about 15feet from the buckets. Now they cant see him at all because he is in an entirely separate fenced in area separated by an alley. It was a cold rainy night that we moved him, so maybe they didn't want to be wet and cold but they have roosted in the coop ever since. If it was him that kept them out there, I had no idea he was influencing the situation at all.

 

[Mother-Hen-Michele]

An update: those chickens went back to roosting outside on the buckets the next night. One cold night a few weeks later, the quarantined rooster's light burnt out so we moved him to our fenced in backyard so we could keep a closer eye on him. Those chickens started roosting in the coop the night we moved him. I guess they stayed out there to be with him? He was a part of their original flock. He had a separate enclosure and shelter that sat away from both of the coops and about 15feet from the buckets. Now they cant see him at all because he is in an entirely separate fenced in area separated by an alley. It was a cold rainy night that we moved him, so maybe they didn't want to be wet and cold but they have roosted in the coop ever since. If it was him that kept them out there, I had no idea he was influencing the situation at all.

Wow, thank you for the update. This may save someone's flock.

I had an old local farmer tell me "you always put the rooster in a separate coop" ... In Maybe this is what he meant