Chickens not using swing?

[katie_3487]

I’ve heard chickens love swings, so we built a swing for our chickens and it’s been up about 2 and a half weeks and none of them use it. We put some treats on it and they just eat it off and not fly up. And we even put a bird on it and she just flew off immediately. What should I do?

 

[Brooks_]

They likely never will use a swing. They're not parakeets.

 

[WingsysRoost]

I heard the same thing, that they like the swings, but none of mine ever did.

Some of them even seemed scared by it, so I ended up removing it.

 

[CoopBoots]

When I was a kid, I had a rooster that I could get to sit and swing with me on a large porch-type swing. For the record he didn't love it, but his 12 year old human really wanted him to and he obliged He had to be made to sit all the way down on it, while it was held still, before motion could be introduced.

I was gifted a little chicken size perch swing recently, and I didn't expect them to use it on their own (they don't). My eventual plan is to "fix" it in place temporarily, get one of the girls used to hopping up for treats, and then eventually I can try introducing a bit of wiggle to see if that's a deal breaker or not. Definitely a novelty thing, and I don't know when I'll have time to spend on training! But, I bet it would be a fun little project.

 

[SilverBirds]

They would much rather sit on sturdy perches vs a swing that makes it hard to balance. I'd scarp the swing and get some nice branches for them to sit on.

 

[NestingMillenial]

I have had mine for barely a week so take that for what it's worth, but they seem to like sitting on the coop door, which moves a bit back and forth but not as much as a swing: maybe it's a question of movement type or amplitude? Ahaha, no idea!

 

[My Three Chicks]

Agreed! Thought my chickens were weird that they don't like the swings. Tried 2 different swings, encouraged them with treats, placed it low, etc. No interest. So I removed them since they get in the way. I guess they are all different!

 

[rosemarythyme]

From my experience most chickens do not like swings. I do have one available, and it does get used when I have chicks (my guess is because they aren't heavy enough to really move it very much, so the amount of swaying is minimal). Once they get older they do not use it again.

 

[3KillerBs]

They likely never will use a swing. They're not parakeets.

This.

They will usually prefer a stable perch over an unsteady one.

 

[Ridgerunner]

What should I do?

Try something. If it works, great. If it doesn't work try something else if you feel you have to try something. Some things work for some people and don't for others. Be flexible and base what you do on what you see with your chickens.