40 chickens, 1 little girl

[TinaHail]

My daughter has about 40 chickens and after she goes run around with them, she comes into the house and complains about how all of them would refuse to go back into the coop. She's tried feeding them treats, and rounding them up. But nothing seems to work. We let them out at 9 am. Then put them back I the coop at 5 pm. They never go back by themselves.

 

[redsoxs]

They won't go back in when it gets dark? Have they never gone back in on their own? Feeding them treats at bedtime will likely make they stay out longer, waiting for handout. Also, most chickens like to stay outside until dusk but then head in on their own normally.

 

[Lookin4GoodLife]

This time of year, 5PM is still a little early. The sun is still up enough that they don't want to go to bed yet. If you didn't leave them in there for a couple weeks straight when they were just babies, they may be confused as to where "bed" is. How old are these chickens?

 

[TinaHail]

Where I live it gets pretty dark fast, they never go back in on their own. They usually are around 2 years old.

 

[centrarchid]

Show a picture of where you want them to roost. Have they ever roosted there?

 

[Lookin4GoodLife]

Yeah, if they're 2 years old, I doubt you're going to train them to go in. I wouldn't worry about it and let Darwin sort it out. Or start eating them yourself and train the next group where home is. If they're daughter's pets, I guess all you can do is fiddle with them every day and hope for the best.