Before they break their fool necks

[mipsy6]

I have also found that the steepness of the lamp or ladder really matters to my chickens. They also prefer a ramp with gripping slats attached. Like a ladder with a back. I think something about an open ladder freaks them out. Maybe you could try a ramp with a less steep incline?

 

[peeboo]

your poop catcher rules!

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
Thanks, mipsy6, I like that idea. If they don't learn to land on the landing board, I'll try giving them a ramp about eight feet long (square 5 + square 6 = 25 + 36 = 61 square root of 61= about 8 feet for the hypotenuse. They just might use it. I'm going to try for a few days though to force them to leave the roost going down to the landing board, hopefully without smacking into the green, plastic screen that's there to stop them; otherwise, they'll be on the roost all day.
Something else, tonight they're going to have to get on to the landing board from behind it in other to go up to the roost. Always before they're jumped up from the front of what was only a 2x4, i.e., they might be spending the night on the floor if they don't figure that out. I'll letcha know.

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
Thanks, mipsy6, I like that idea. If they don't learn to land on the landing board, I'll try giving them a ramp about eight feet long (square 5 + square 6 = 25 + 36 = 61 square root of 61= about 8 feet for the hypotenuse. They just might use it. I'm going to try for a few days though to force them to leave the roost going down to the landing board, hopefully without smacking into the green, plastic screen that's there to stop them; otherwise, they'll be on the roost all day.
Something else, tonight they're going to have to get on to the landing board from behind it in other to go up to the roost. Always before they're jumped up from the front of what was only a 2x4, i.e., they might be spending the night on the floor if they don't figure that out. I'll letcha know.

Well, they figured out how to do that. When I went out to close the pop door, they were already up on the roost. I'll try to see what happens when they come down in the morning.

 

[ruth]

My roosts are rafters about 11 feet up. There's a ladder that a few of them do use but most fly straight up from the ground, some fly to top of hutch and then up, and the bucket is in there because some get on it and fly up. However, only one uses the ladder to come down. Everyone else flys straight down. If the coop door is open, they fly straight out the door and land outside coop.

So far no one has broken a neck or leg or anything else. But you sure don't want to be standing under that roost once they are all up there and toss some feed on the ground because it starts raining big fat chickens - believe me I learned the hard way.

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
Thanks, that's interesting because I've read so many warning about large, heavy breeds being in peril if they have to jump down more than two or three feet. Supposedly, or so some posters wrote, they break and/or strain their legs, wings, and sometimes the fall would kill them. I've been worried about them. I'm going to leave that screen up for maybe a week just to see if they'll get used to the landing board. It'll be interesting to see what they do in the morning. Sure seems to be a lot of differing opinions on this subject. Thanks again, like I said, you're experience is interesting.

 

[joebryant]

I should go out right now and take a picture of what's going on.
Anne went out about a half hour ago and opened the pop door.
I just now went out to see if/how they came off the roost.
They're all lined up on the front 2x4 of the roost. They're all looking down at the landing board, then looking at one another to see who's going to go first.
They all have the look in their eyes that says, "How are we going to do this?" I can tell that the rooster feels obligated to do something/anything. I hope that I'm out there when one of them attempts jumping no more that three feet out and down three feet to the landing board. THEY ARE SOOOOO CONFUSED that I can't stop laughing. I feel sadistic, but they have to learn.

 

[joebryant]

After almost 1 1/2 hours of looking down at the landing board from the front 2x4 on the roost, two hens have given up and moved to the back 2x4, leaving the rooster and a black hen on the front still looking down and wondering what to do and how to do it. Like I said, they might be up there all day. I can wait.

 

[Buff Hooligans]

Alright Joe, this looks like it's going to be a contest of the wills. Who will buckle first, Joe or his chickens?


I bet it will be you. I bet you're going online right now looking up little mini escalator systems or mini elevators with automatic scratch dispensers.

 

[BeardedChick]

But you sure don't want to be standing under that roost once they are all up there and toss some feed on the ground because it starts raining big fat chickens - believe me I learned the hard way.

I am going to build a ladder for mine but I thought I'd try just two really wide rungs on it (the hop down is about 36"). It's interesting to see all the different ladder systems.​