Chickens don't want to go home at night

[Charlene]

So my chickens are about 3 months old and I have been letting them free range in the day. At night I lock them in a barn stall. But it's gotten so they don't want to go home in the stall at night. It's the only time I feed them scratch! But there is a lot of tasty horse stuff outside too. Since I feed wheat hay, there's lot of wheat heads around, and the dropped horse pellets, not to mention all the things growing/living in the manure and ground. So, what should I do???

Eventually I would like them to free range 24/7 but they've barely figured out how to roost, so I don't feel they're safe enough at night yet.

Ideas? Is this normal?

 

[Beekissed]

Where else do they go for the night? Are you trying to get them in to the stall before dark? Are they wanting to roost for the night in other parts of the barn?
I only had this problem once with a sweet little RIR that wanted to be with us and would roost on the chair on the porch. I carried her down to the henhouse every night. You know, she didn't want to roost with the other chickens at all.....she would finally bed down on top of the slanted nest boxes and would slither down and recover all night! Funny hen!

For the most part, my chickens usually go wherever they can roost the highest and safest....this just happens to be the henhouse.

 

[Charlene]

The thing is when I go to get them they are hanging out by the horse feeding area. Sometime sitting on the fence (but on the lowest rail since they're young?) and sometimes they're still scratching around. It is about an hour before dark.

If they would roost up high I'd leave them alone but they haven't seemed to figure it out yet. For awhile they'd come running into the stall, but lately they aren't interested. Last night I had to chase them with help from a friend. I hope they either start roosting soon or get over this sillyness!

 

[JSC]

Seems there out to be a "sticky" on this subject. Here is our problem.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=44850

JSC's Hubby

 

[JSC]

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https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=532179#p532179