Chickens not wanting to roost

[Feeder]

Finally got some pic's up of my chickens.

 

[JakRat]

My first hens didnt like to roost. The girl I have now only roost when the heat lamp is on... they are silly creatures.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Well that gang sure looks like they could roost if they wanted to. I wouldn't mind roosting inside that coop it looks fabulous! They maybe just don't feel threatened enough to get up off the floor or to put it another way they feel more safe on the floor then up high? Is there a draft up high? Is there a window up high that scares them forcing them to want to stay down low? Is the roost too high off the ground? Do you have a ladder to the roost or do they have to fly up? If fly up - try propping a ladder up and see if that makes the difference. My Snow White likes to walk up the ladder. AC likes to fly up. Smokey & Bandit walk up the ramp ladder & Foghorn just hops up to the roost.

 

[TheBrumstead]

My Buff Orp doesn't roost. She's about 6 months old and not laying yet. She will be perched on the side of the nest box (that my only layer doesn't use, but that's another issue), when I close them up at night, and in the corner on the floor in the morning.

 

[BarbG]

When my chickens were days old they roosted fine with no problems. Once they moved into the coop they ignored the roosts. I tried for months to get them to use the roosts and even rebuilt the roosts a few times. They happily sit on the sawhorse and milk crate in their run but at 9 months old they still ignore any and all roosts in their coop. I've come to accept they prefer sleeping in a pile of straw on the floor. Perhaps future additions to the flock will use the coop roosts.

 

[Feeder]

Thank's for all the input, I've learned that chickens do what they do. Oh well as long as they are happy that is all that matters to me.

 

[so lucky]

That's the kind of coop I really wanted, but DH refused to build one that big. My only suggestion to the OP is that if it is very dark where the roost is, the chickens may be reluctant to go to it, prefering instead the screened area (and the last bit of light) If it is important to you, maybe a very dim light bulb left on 24/7 would help.
Super coop. Congrats to you or whoever you got to build it!

 

[Feeder]

thank's for the compliment so lucky, I built the coop nice and roomy for additional girls. Took me 3 weeks this past spring.

 

[shelleyd2008]

You don't have any pics of the interior of your coop, is it possible that your roost is too high? Or otherwise difficult for them to get to? How wide is the board they have for roosting?


Most of my chickens roost in the rafters of my barn, about 9' off the ground. The games and most of the bantams can fly up there, but the bigger girls and guys need a ladder to get to it.

 

[cmom]

Do you have any pics of the inside of your coop where your roosts are? Pics may help to figure out why they aren't using the roosts.

When we first built this coop.