15 week old chickens still not roosting at night

karenviolin

In the Brooder
Aug 15, 2016
20
1
36
Hey everyone, I"m just wondering if I should be worrying about this or not. When they wake up in the morning the first thing they do is go perch on the large stick that we have in our run. However, they are still sleeping together in a corner inside the coop. Should I just wait it out? I read a few places on this forum that sometimes it takes as long as 6 months for them to roost. They were all chicks together, and there are no older chickens...any advice?
 
When I have chicks that do this, I wait til it starts getting dark and put them up. After a couple of times they catch on
 
How many chickens do you have and what does your roost look like? THey like routine and changing their sleep patterns can be stressful to them in some instances.
 
The roost is definitely wide enough. We have 3 chickens....a rhode island red, plymouth rock and an Ameruacana. The funny thing is that when they were babies they would sleep on the little roost we gave them for at lease part of the night. Here's a pic of when they first went into the coop. You can seen the roost bar in the back. We have the nesting boxes sectioned off because I didnt want them to sleep in them...


 
When I have chicks that do this, I wait til it starts getting dark and put them up. After a couple of times they catch on
We'll try that. My husband went out there one night and tried to put them up there, but they kinda freaked out.
 
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Quote: Go out well after dark, I use a head light and keep it from lighting up the roost too much, if they can't see they won't move.
Pick up bird with both hands firmly holding wings to body, place feet on roost and give a few seconds to get stable,
slowly remove hands with a little steadying touch on the back, talking calmly and quietly the whole time.

Have they spent any time on the roost during the day?
Can they get up and down from it easily?
If they haven't, that's where I would start, just start putting as many as you can up on the roost during the day.....
.....it will freak them out at first but curiosity will prevail.
 
So we went out last night at like 11pm. It's was no problem with the Plymouth Rock and the ameruacana but the Rhode Island Red totally flipped out- lol. Maybe I didn't get a good enough grip on her. I got them all up there, hopefully they stayed that way! We'll go out again and try the same thing.
 
So we went out last night at like 11pm. It's was no problem with the Plymouth Rock and the ameruacana but the Rhode Island Red totally flipped out- lol. Maybe I didn't get a good enough grip on her. I got them all up there, hopefully they stayed that way! We'll go out again and try the same thing.
They can freak...lol!! ...especially if they've not been handled alot, just keep at it, they will get used to being touched.
 
Ok so it's been 3 nights now that we've gone in at night and put them up on the roost. They stay there all night but still aren't getting up there on their own. How long should we keep doing this? Should I just let them do what they want to do and leave it alone? Cleanup is so much easier if they would just use the roost!!!
 
Ok so it's been 3 nights now that we've gone in at night and put them up on the roost. They stay there all night but still aren't getting up there on their own. How long should we keep doing this? Should I just let them do what they want to do and leave it alone? Cleanup is so much easier if they would just use the roost!!!
Well, you can keep doing it..... or not..... it's up to you.

It can take real persistence to 'change' a birds bad habits, 3 times isn't always enough.
I have been covering the nests in the early evenings to keep the pullets from roosting in them for a couple months.
They finally seemed to have stopped, fingers crossed, been 3 nights now.

I don't think you answered my previous questions:
Have they spent any time on the roost during the day?
Can they get up and down from it easily?

If they haven't, that's where I would start, just start putting as many as you can up on the roost during the day.....
.....it will freak them out at first but curiosity will prevail.
 

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