6 Week Old Chicken Behavior In the Evening.. Normal?

[newchikngal]

My 6 week--- almost 7 week old chickens seem to be spending a lot of time in the coop during the day; they literally go in there and cuddle together at noon. however, they never go up into the coop at night. I have a coop with an attached run that we will be expanding soon. This evening.. About 6 pm... It was dark and I went out there to put them in the coop. They were huddled in the bottom corner of the coop/run chirping like crazy. It sounded like a stressed chirp. Is this normal? I'm kind of worried.... Any tips would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

That is somewhat odd behavior. I would check the coop over and see if there's a reason, my thoughts might be night critters like mites or mice and rats.

Some chicks like to mess around until it's too late to go into the coop because it gets dark and scary in there, so a night light could help.

How long have they been in the coop and is this behavior recent.

 

[newchikngal]

I didn't see anything like that.... It's in the 50's here.. Could it be too cold? They have been with us since Saturday so only a few days really. We got them on Saturday.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It will take a while for them to think of your coop as home, so go out and round them up before it gets dark, after a week or two they should be more familiar with it and start going in by themselves. They are probably thinking they will go back to their own home where they were familiar with thing. Congratulations on your new chicks.

 

[newchikngal]

Thank you!

 

[aart]

They could be cold if they were kept in warmer where they came from?
Are they in a draft free coop?
That 'bedtime' chirping is pretty common.

 

[Lukedawg]

Mine did that for the longest time also when I moved them from the brooder to the coop just leave the door open and ample light they can see and for me what works when I get a new batch in for every day they are out wandering I leave them closed up for two days in the coop to promote them thinking of it as home. After a couple weeks they usually go right in at nightfall and they may still be learning how a chicken acts also so they may not end up on the roost until they are almost laying age of they are layers! I have three that just started laying after 5 months and they just now started to join the others on the roost at night!!

 

[Sutremaine]

Ours did that for a few days after we got them, and they were exactly the same age as yours. I don't know if they were used to sleeping on the floor, or if they were roosting at the breeder's. I expect their chirping was due to being unable to find "their" sleeping place and maybe their usual sleeping buddies. They were impossible to get hold of before it got really dark, so I waited until they were quietly bedded down in a corner of the run before depositing them on the coop perch.

They probably are stressing about their strange new sleeping arrangements -- there's nothing you can do about that -- but if they end up in the same place every night then the strangeness and newness will quickly fade.

 

[Backyard Hencam]

I agree that chicks are used to sleeping on the floor, cuddled for warmth. Put them up on the roost at night for a week or so. We also put limbs around on the outdoor area so they could "practice" getting up on things. I think if they cuddle during the day hours, they are cold. Good luck and have fun with them. They will be big hens before you know it!

 

[azygous]

It would really help if you filled out your profile so we know what part of the world you live in. It would automatically let us know what kind of climate these chicks are facing.

The fact you have only had these chicks for a couple of days tells us they may be stressing out over the sudden change. Chickens don't do "change", you realize. They complain up a storm when being forced to endure change of any sort.

At six to seven weeks of age, they should be able to handle cold temperatures standing on their heads, so to speak. So even if it's cold, that isn't likely the problem.

They are more likely showing their displeasure at finding themselves in a new home, and they are huddling together more for reassurance than warmth. They will gradually become used to their new surroundings and should begin acting like normal chicks in another few days.