coop training?

[Beldenfarm]

I have 7 week old feathered out chicks and have introduced them finally to their new run which has been built. they had been locked into their coop for a few weeks while it was being built, so they know it is home in there, but when it gets dark out nobody wants to go back inside!!!!! I have to coax them outside into the run in the first place, then at night one by one gently nudge them up the ramp into the coop for the night. will this just be a "training" needed for them to understand up and down if how to get in and out? and that after a few days they should be able to do it on their own? I hope so!!!! has anyone experienced this? if so what did you do. I think tomorrow i will just leave the run door open and not coax anyone out, and see how they do. wish me luck they do it on their own! theres no adults to teach them what to do besides me!!!


also I have been lighting their coop at night with christmas lights because we wanted them to not be so scared at first to adjust to ther new coop from indoors, and it ended up remaining light a while longer than i thought i would let it be lit up for, I plan on turning the lights off permanently tomorrow morning when i open up the run in the am so they wont notice, and it will just get dark in their coop for bed time.... anyone done this before?

 

[redsoxs]

They'll get the hang of the ramp and the coop after a few days. As to the light - they'll be fine without it. In fact, chickens become very docile in the dark and they'll just go to sleep. Also, if there is any picking at each other in the coop, removing the light will eliminate that as they calm right down in the dark. Good luck to you!

 

[NC Chick Man82]

It just takes time, I don't really think there is a quick teach to it just depends on when the birds figure it out... I know it took a while for mine to do it on their own so i just started leaving them out and few days later i would go out to find them back in on their own

 

[chick24]

Mine were happy in the run but could/would not go up the ramp into the coop at night. So for two weeks we had to go out there at dusk and lift each one up to the coop. At first we locked them in and would let them out in the morning, but then we started letting them come out on their own in the morning. Then one night I went out to lift them up and there were there on there own! It took longer than I expected but it happened.