Will chickens go in the coop at night on their own?

[caveman]

My hens get to run around in the yard in the evening when I am there to supervise, and right around 1800 they always go back inside to roost. The first few days they were a little unsure, but once the top hen took her place on the roost, the rest soon followed. I recommend focusing on the leader of your flock and let the natural instinct to follow him/her teach the rest.

 

[pawprint2104]

I feel your pain. My girls used to consistently enter their coop (an old dog house) at sundown. Now, with a new secure coop (all painted and pretty with an attached nest box) they only go in if I carry them. I tried lights on the inside, the outside, dim lights, bright lights, but nothing seems to work. Only rain encourages them to go inside unaided. I presume they don't like their coop, but it's nearly identical to to their old one. It faces the same way, and is about the same size. However, the new coop has a smaller entry door. My girls perch in the open air right beside their coop along the edge of a wine barrel planter.

I don't know, and I hope someone here can help me, too.

 

[Petej]

Mine enter the coop at night on their own...

They are more apt to use the the coop when I have the light on inside. It turns off at 2100 though, so they do get some sleep....

 

[MTopPA_18707]

Dan,

Eventually you'll want the birds in the coop at night . . . keep working on it.
The tips provided by other posters are good.

The reason they must sleep in the coop is eventually predators will attack them outside.
Raccoons in particular are known to reach through chicken wire and kill birds.

Many runs have 1/2" hardware cloth [giant screen stuff] on the bottom 2 feet of their runs to prevent this.

Xriva

 

[BigIslandChicks]

everyone has good advice...i would say lock them inside a few days and at night go in and place them up on the roost...theyll get it in a few days.

daniel-delarosa i checked out your page and your coop is very cute!

i would say if you cant get them all out tonight (or whatever if already morning where your are - hawaii time here

) they will be ok for 1 night bc you have the run around the coop, but maybe during the day when they come out and our scratching around you could block off underneath with some scrap wood or extra wire so they can not get in there before dark to sleep. they will either be out exposed in the run or will figure to go up and in the door. just a suggestion..i know i have had to use scrap wood to block of little spots in our coop, (we have a big open air coop/run covered with a large rabbit hutch style nest box inside. i have the bottom fenced for new birds or young pullets) one of the new EE was behind the bottom pen her 1st morning out of quarantine!

she was fine, but i had to move the whole thing (9ft long X 3ft wide) to get her out. i learned my lesson and blocked off the areas where they could sneak into. also now when the big flock is out free ranging i let the my other 2 pullets out of their little pen to explore the big coop. and dont have to worry about them sneaking behind or underneath something...when its time for the big kids to come in i just heard the small ones back in their little door and close them off.

over time you will figure out all their little spots

and make improvement as needed.
i am always doing little thing to improve the original coop...and then chicken math happens and your working on the chick coop, the broody pen, the incubator... and whatever else they need!!

 

[MTopPA_18707]

I looked at your page - that is a nice coop !

As someone else suggested, maybe block the underside of the coop until the birds learn to roost inside the coop.

But once they learn it . . . I would reopen the underside because it's a great [ cool ] place for the birds to get shelter in hot weather.

. . . . a question about your coop. It looks like there are roosts outside in the run. It might help the birds to learn to sleep in the coop if there were only roosts inside the coop.

Xriva

 

[Uncle_Bubba]

We started our chickens in the coop for a week, partly to get them to think that was 'home", and the run wasn't finished yet. They are really good at going in at night, and the roosters do a good job most of the time of getting the hens into the run after free ranging them. sometimes there are 1 or 2 hens that get confused and stand outside the run next to the coop door, running back and forth. Sometimes we have to go out and show them where the gate is, sometimes they find it on their own. They will get it sooner or latter, just be more stubborn then they are!

 

[daniel-delarosa]

Thanks for the replies! Blocking off the underside of the coop is a great idea. I left it open for the extra footage and for a cool spot to hang out in the summer. I will try that today. As for the roosts on the outside, the run looked plain when I got finished building it. I put them in there to add a little "flavor". So far the chickens haven't touched them.

 

[daniel-delarosa]

Well, I blocked the spot where the chickens get under the coop. I went out a little bit after dark and all of them were piled up under the ramp!

 

[nuchickontheblock]

silly birds!