Ok so I have a question about chicken behavior... like a cow will walk up a ramp but won't walk down a ramp do chickens have theses type of quirks? i built a coop with a ramp but my coops access hole isn't on the side of the coop but on the bottom so my ramp goes from the ground to the bottom of the coop and at first i thought the hole was just too small now I'm wondering if i make a rookie mistake or just stumbled onto one of those chicken quirks.....
So they will go in, but not out? Interesting. I can see how it would be confusing to them to have to both go down the ramp, and through the opening at the same time (head above opening while feet are down ramp). Your ramp may just be too steep, in which case the opening may actually need widened if you slant it more. That is actually a good idea though I think. You shouldn't need to worry about closing the coop door to block the wind if the entrance is on the bottom.
Going down a ramp feels like less stable footing than going up does. Agrees it might be too steep....can you post some pics? How old are birds and how long have they been in coop with this ramp? Also might be a line of vision thing because it's in the floor instead of a wall and they can't see what's out there before going down it.
i lengthened the opening so they had a little more "runway" it seems to be helping and its only been one day with with the new hens and coop... im sure they will "Learn" how to get in and out better as time goes on. thanks for the tips and info.
