Chicken coop door too small?

[ctesta]

Hi everyone,
So our chickens won’t sleep in the coop but will stay in the run. We do not have any mites so my idea is that the door is too small for them (it is about 8inx8in). My fiancé doesn’t think that’s why but I think that they don’t like the possibility of being trapped. Has anyone had this problem?

 

[Sricher91]

Mine don’t like it either, at all. I don’t think it has to do with the size door though. The didn’t even like it when they were tiny babies.

 

[Chicklove88]

How old are they? Is the coop new? R they bantams or what breed of chickens? I would probably say it's a little short honestly... ill have to go out and see how big mine is but its raining... id make it at least 10-12 inches tall. Is there a roosting bar in the run that they are roosting on at night that they like?? My chickens all go to the coop but they were raised to go in the coop at night. When i put them in their new coop and run though, the poor things were so confused and WOULD NOT go through the coop door on their own, they were scared, but i picked them up at bedtime and put them all in there over and over until they stayed. On the other hand, my boyfriend has a ton of chickens and almost ALL sleep on the roosting bar in the run. They only stay in the coop or nesting boxes at night if they r broody or have babies... i was trying to attach a pic but it wont work for some reason but they have a mama hen and some 3 week old babies that have all been sleeping in the coop... tonight he went out there to lock everyone up and somehow those tiny babies and the mama were all on the highest roosting bar almost 7 feet high!! No idea how they got up there, natural instinct i guess but mama showed them. If ur chickens like being in the run... no biggy. If ur worried about it and want them in their coop instead try putting some roosting bars in the coop itself... also ur chickens may have no idea what they r supposed to do, you sometimes have to show them what to do. They arent just gonna voluntarily go in a dark hole that they dont know where it leads to, ya know? Also chickens naturally "roost" and like being off the ground amd up high... they feel safer

Hi everyone,
So our chickens won’t sleep in the coop but will stay in the run. We do not have any mites so my idea is that the door is too small for them (it is about 8inx8in). My fiancé doesn’t think that’s why but I think that they don’t like the possibility of being trapped. Has anyone had this problem?

 

[Acre4Me]

How old are the chickens, how many of them and can you post coop pics?

Maybe the coop isn’t very well ventilated? The door size sounds ok, maybe on the smaller size.

What breeds of chickens? We have full size ones, including 2 Jersey Giants and an 8x8 door would be waaay too small for them... the Male Jersey Giant is approx 2.5 feet tall at 30 weeks old...and still expected to grow some more. However, our leghorns would be just fine with an 8x8 door as they are our smallest full-size chickens.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

What size is the coop?

 

[chickens really]

How old are they?...Did you train them to use the Coop?..You need to herd them in as the sun is going down so they have time to Roost before dark.

 

[aart]

Short answer, probably not.
Good questions asked above need to be answered if you want to solve your issue.

 

[ctesta]

Hi everyone! Thank you SO much for your responses! Sorry for not responding sooner. Anyways, I have added some photos of their coop (ignore the mess, we just got back from vacation). But we have a buff Orpington and a light Brahma. They go to the run on their own every night and they have a roosting bar on the inside of the coop as well. We have put them inside many times as well and even if we close them in there, they still pop out the next time.

 

[Ducksandchickens]

I would make the door a bit bigger and put a light near the door so they can see in. My hens were afraid but after putting a light so they could see the inside they were fine

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Are there any more Windows for light on your coop? Chickens can't see in a darker coop, and are hesitant to go in.