chickens in basement moving them outside

[csargent27]

will chickens know when to go in the coop at night if they have been in our basement. we put them in the basement because of the extreme cold we had this winter I am wondering where they have been in the basement if I let them out to wonder around today if they will go into the coop tonight

 

[Sonya9]

Introduce them to the coop. When mine first went out at 7 weeks I put their food/water in the coop and put them in there too. They went in and out all day, at dusk I made sure they were in and I closed the chicken door.

First night they were all spread out on the coop floor individually and they looked kind of unhappy and lost, once it got dark I would put them together in one place. Second night they discovered the nest boxes and they all huddle inside of one, I put a towel on the bottom of one nest box with a disposable puppy pad over it to catch the poop so they have a warmer soft place to huddle up.

Mine still don't want to roost on a pole at night, they prefer to cuddle up together and lay down while sleeping. If it is cold out think about making them a soft/warm place to sleep away from drafts, maybe use an old towel or something else. When it gets dark you may want to check on them to make sure they are huddled together.

Yours will figure out the coop is their home/shelter after a couple of days and then they go in by themselves at dusk.

 

[onionheadtg2014]

If you are worried about them wandering away I would just leave them in the coop for a week or two and they will know that that is their safe haven and home. They will want to forage by day and sleep in the coop at night. That's what I did with mine and they love it.