6 week old chicks not leaving coop

[mcdowell89]

I have five 6 week old chicks i introduced them to the run after letting them hang out in their coop for 4 days. Three of the five chicks will happily come out and explore their run but the other two refuse to leave the coop, this has been going on for 5 days now. My question is do i take them out of the coop and put them in the run with the others or should i let them figure it out on their own. I honestly thought they would join the majority and follow but it doesnt seem like that is going ro happen. TIA

 

[Ridgerunner]

One thing I believe about raising chickens is that if I leave them alone as much as I can and let them work things out at their pace I have fewer behavior problems to worry about. There are people on this forum that disagree with me, they seem to feel you should force your chicks and chickens to do certain things. There are times I intervene but this would not be one of them.

 

[mcdowell89]

One thing I believe about raising chickens is that if I leave them alone as much as I can and let them work things out at their pace I have fewer behavior problems to worry about. There are people on this forum that disagree with me, they seem to feel you should force your chicks and chickens to do certain things. There are times I intervene but this would not be one of them.

Thank you for that I've been trying to be patient. They are still young and im hopeful but i dont want to force them into something and them end up not liking my presnece either.

 

[ValerieJ]

I agree with Ridgerunner. I would just allow the chicks to be where they want to be. They'll figure it out eventually. They might be intimidated by the older hens, and sometimes that's for good reason. So I don't think you should force them.

 

[mcdowell89]

I agree with Ridgerunner. I would just allow the chicks to be where they want to be. They'll figure it out eventually. They might be intimidated by the older hens, and sometimes that's for good reason. So I don't think you should force them.

I dont any older hens this is my first flock since I was a kid. Not used to chicks. I grew up with already grown hens. I just wanted to be sure i dont need to teach them how to be chickens. They also aren't using their roost yet. I guess they will figure it all out.

 

[Ridgerunner]

My brooder-raised chicks will play on the roosts during the day but they typically don't start roosting at night until they are 10 to 12 weeks old. I've had some start at 5-1/2 weeks, I've had some go longer than 12 weeks. About the only thing consistent with chickens is that they are consistently inconsistent. Each brood is different. I think how your coop is set up make a difference. Until they start to roost mine typically sleep in a group on the coop floor.

 

[wyoDreamer]

Try giving treats just outside the pop-door. It may coax them out of the coop.
I have a 3 year old chicken that will run out of the coop and into the run to get her share of the treats, then run back into the coop. Otherwise, she seems to stay in the coop all day because I never see her out in the run. When I let the flock out to free-range, she sits just outside the coop on their porch and watches. Just inches from the pop-door.

 

[mcdowell89]

Thank you guys for all the help. I left today and left them in their run for about 4 hours when I returned every single one of them were in the run. Yay. I will definitely just let them figure out the roosting part. All 5 are out there i took them some fresh picked blueberries for treats tonight they seem to be loving the run now.