Advice needed in Arizona please

[mikeinglendale]

I live in Arizona. The girls have a misting system, fans, covered top over the pen. But wont sleep in their house. They will go inside during the day but not at night. Is this ok? I dont want to lock them in their house at night because of the heat. Thanks

 

[Judy]

I would make their pen as predator proof as I could and let them sleep where they want.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Hi Mike, it's likely too hot inside for them, even with the misters and shade. Your coop needs more ventilation. Can you remove one entire wall from it and replace it with hardware cloth? Also, certain kinds of parasites, for example poultry ticks, will make them reluctant to go into the coop at night. Check the roost and the crevices around it within a half hour after sunset tonight to see if they are there. I really suspect the lack of ventilation to be the issue, but it's always worth ruling out ticks here in AZ.

ETA, it is o.k. to leave them out, but your enclosure has to be very predator proof.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Chicken logic is not very logical at least from the human perspective. For 100,000s of centuries chickens have equated a tall roosting place with personal safety. No matter how much human logic we employ a chicken will not give up its long held belief that a tall roost is a safe roost. This is true regardless of how much effort we humans put into varmint proofing a chicken's coop, pen, run, or walk.

 

[Mrs. K]

Hoping you only have the two hens with that coop. The coop is very small, and will need to be elevated is you want them to roost there.
It night roosting bar needs to be the highest in the set up.

Mrs K