Transitioning broody-raised chicks to roosting - roost location recomendations to minimize flock con

[All Ball]

I have 3 hens, one who has been brooding 8 chicks within the flock. The chicks are now 7 weeks old and my broody, who is the lead chicken and has maintained her dominance, is getting ready to transition back to laying. She is still sleeping with the chicks but could stop any day now.

My question for folks: the other hens will not tolerate the chicks on their roost at this point - though I don't know what will happen if the broody jumps up, as she is boss.

My plan is to keep 1 pullet and sell/give away the rest, but in the meantime I need a temporary roost until I decide which girl to keep and can manage the break the apron strings..... . And can find good homes...

My options:
- Put up a roost lower down, so it seems like lower status, in a more protected area of the coop. It might, however, be in pecking range - though I could probably put up a barrier as well - er, hopefully...
- Put up a roost out of pecking range; however, it would have to be the same height as the 1st roost. And it would be in a more exposed part of the coop, with northwest facing hardware cloth below the roost - so the pullets and cockerels would deal with a big temperature transition.

Any thoughts on what would work better?

Thanks!!

 

[IceAngel]

New chicks are going to get pecked, that's just part of coop life. I try to have lots of escape routes for them.

When you mentioned the lower roosts I got to thinking what about higher roosts, right near the ceiling......that way the bigger chickens can't roost there. If you can train them to get up there, it might solve your problem.

 

[All Ball]

Thanks IceAngel!

Yes, I agree pecking is part of the whole business, I'm worried more about so much aggro that the chicks won't use the roost!

I wish I had that much room - this is a small coop for backyard free-rangers, I've got about 3 feet to work with. Of course, the chicks could probably roost 6 inches from the ceiling for a bit....but they'd still be in pecking distance. I guess I thought I'd read somewhere that roost height conveyed status....but I'm having trouble tracking that down now.

Thanks for your thoughts!!

 

[Folly's place]

Eleven chickens won't fit on a three foot roost; four chickens won't fit either. The answer is that you need a lot more space, and more roost space. My broody hens get their chicks up on the roosts with mom as early as four weeks of age, and they find their space with mom's help. It sounds like it's time to either enlarge your coop or move these chicks elsewhere. Mary

 

[All Ball]

Hi Mary,

Thanks so much for your response!

Sorry I was unclear, 3-feet in height, so not a lot of space to put a second roost far higher than the first. There is plenty of space to fit all the chickens while the little ones are teenagers. They are not staying long, maybe 2-3 weeks more. I would of course get a much bigger coop if they were. I will try erecting one of the roost options I mentioned, the question is which one tends to be better for flock dynamics, or less threatening to the status of the lowest-rung adult chicken: Keeping the young ones low, or keeping them farther away but at the same height.

Thanks again!

 

[IceAngel]

...... It sounds like it's time to either enlarge your coop or move these chicks elsewhere. Mary

Maybe you can erect a temporary roost for the chicks until you decide what to do with them. I make them out of 4 pallets or even a big Refrigerator box. The pallets can be picked up for free at any store that gets warehouse deliveries (i.e. liquor stores/pups, large grocery chains). You can get Fridge boxes from any store that sells them. I will try to get you some pictures later today.

I confine the birds in their private roosting coop for a few days, after that they free range and find their way back on their own. Since you have the mommy bird the little fledglings may be tempted to follow her back to her coop, instead of going to their new area.....so you may have to confine them longer.

The great thing about the pallets or the Fridge boxes, is that they are free and you can throw them out when you don't need them anymore.

 

[All Ball]

Hi IceAngel,

Thank you so much for this idea - maybe I can get a fridge box or pallets to make a temporary roost for them in the garage. My coop would be too small - it is not large as they free-range during the day. But it seems I must do something major - the broody awoke this morning in a she-devil mood, she's been temper-tantruming all day for treats, chasing the young ones, as well as the adults - I doubt she's going to tolerate having them in the same coop with her. I am really surprised - I knew that they lost their interest in the chicks, but didn't realize that they would become aggressive. I mean, it's not as if the chicks are challenging her in any way...I would love to see your pallet example, if it is handy. A fridge box would be great, because I could put it up against the side door and they could go right in, without messing the garage too badly, but might be pretty hard to find. I think the stores these days really lock up their boxes.

Sunset is due in another 2 hours so I'm going to try to whip up something very quick!!!

 

[donrae]

If you're going to sell most of the birds, I wouldn't worry about it. Let them sleep on the ground and avoid the issue altogether. At 7 weeks they're well able to leave momma, I'm not sure why you plan to keep them another few weeks? If there's a particular reason, fine, otherwise go ahead and start selling them now. The sooner they're gone, the sooner the remaining bird can adjust to roosting with momma.

 

[All Ball]

Donrae,

Thank you so much for your advice - I've come across your advice on other threads and really found it thoughtful and helpful. I'm glad to hear that hanging out in the straw should work!

The reason I'm thinking they'll be here a few more weeks is that I checked in with another chicken owner looking for homes for some of her roos and she said it took a while. These are legbars, so I'm hoping that makes it easier, but I'm in an urban area so lots of places like my town ban roosters. Unfortunately, it looks like mamma has decided to be pretty aggressive toward the chicks, so I now I'm thinking I need to keep a couple so the pullet has a sister to hang out with. Hopefully the landlord will understand....