Chickens won’t go inside at night

[TLobin]

Hello,
I’m new to BYC! I started being a crazy chicken lady in Sept. 2019. I have three gals. Up until recently they have been great about getting into the hen house from the outer coop area. I live in Minnesota and it’s gotten quite cold here. They have an elevated house inside the coop. There is light in both areas but the outside lights go off at 7pm while the inside lights stay on until 9:30pm. The door closes at 7:20. Most nights this past couple of weeks I have gone out between 7:30 and 8:00 to find them all cuddled together in front of the automatic door to the hen house. I don’t know what to do. It’s fine when I’m home but there are times that I can’t be. I’m worried they’ll freeze if I leave town. Up until recently they have been angels and go in like they’re supposed to and have been a joy to have! Any helpful advise is MUCH appreciated!

 

[so lucky]

Hi, and welcome to BYC. I am wondering if the girls get confused about the outside light. Maybe you could leave that outside light off, so as it gets dark gradually, they will go in to their coop.

 

[blackandtan]

First of all, welcome!

I don’t think I’d use the auto door till they’re consistently going in the coop. Were they using it before? I think the light inside the coop is a good idea, what is your setup like? For example, where is their food and water?

 

[TLobin]

Hi, and welcome to BYC. I am wondering if the girls get confused about the outside light. Maybe you could leave that outside light off, so as it gets dark gradually, they will go in to their coop.

I was thinking of turning the outside lights off earlier. I had been told that they need approximately 12-14hrs of light per day. They have a heat lamp which I was against at first but two of them were frost bitten on their comb tips so I broke down and got a lamp and of course put ointment on the frostbite. It’s high off the ground and only on during the day when it’s really cold. There’s also an LED strip light on the ceiling. Do you think I should turn the lights off an hour or more before the door closes?

 

[pennyJo1960]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens you may have to physically put them in the coop for a few days try keeping them in for like 4 or 5 days so they know where to lay eggs also

 

[TLobin]

First of all, welcome!

I don’t think I’d use the auto door till they’re consistently going in the coop. Were they using it before? I think the light inside the coop is a good idea, what is your setup like? For example, where is their food and water?

They have always had an auto door. My friends that raise chickens had them already trained when they gave me the girls. The coop is 5x10. The hen house is elevated within the coop. It’s insulated, has 3 nesting boxes and electricity. I purchased it from a man who built it for his daughter. It’s really nice. The food and water is in the outer area. I did start them at first with food and water inside as well as water outside until it began to freeze. The water inside was freezing at night so I took the food and water out and only have it in the large coop area. The water is heated but it’s too big for inside the hen house area. I was told that I can’t have food inside without water and that’s why I took it all out.

 

[TLobin]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens you may have to physically put them in the coop for a few days try keeping them in for like 4 or 5 days so they know where to lay eggs also

I do physically put them in when they don’t go on their own. They have given us eggs everyday since I’ve had them. This behavior is all new for them. Normally they’ve gone right in as soon as the outside lights shut off.

 

[TheRealWitwiki]

I would not use the outside light on timer for the chickens. They should actually go in well before 7 in the winter. I’m on the East Coast it’s dark around 5. Also your inside light may be too bright and giving them enough light to stand outside of their coop. Maybe adjust it to face opposite of the opening. The inside light is good and that’s usually what draws them in at dark. I trained my chickens by letting them out 30 min before dark each day and they naturally found their way back to the coop because of inside light. I would recommend having an outside motion light for you personally when you walk up to coop at night or if predators walk up to scare them off.

 

[TLobin]

I would not use the outside light on timer for the chickens. They should actually go in well before 7 in the winter. I’m on the East Coast it’s dark around 5. Also your inside light may be too bright and giving them enough light to stand outside of their coop. Maybe adjust it to face opposite of the opening. The inside light is good and that’s usually what draws them in at dark. I trained my chickens by letting them out 30 min before dark each day and they naturally found their way back to the coop because of inside light. I would recommend having an outside motion light for you personally when you walk up to coop at night or if predators walk up to scare them off.

I am going to adjust the timer to shut off lights earlier. I also have silver bubble insulation on the walls which I installed when it started getting really cold here. I think the reflection from the inside light shining on the insulation is the problem. I do have a heat lamp hanging from the ceiling. If I turn that off too early it will get awfully cold. They won’t come outside of the coop as they don’t like the snow. There are patio block in front of the coop door and when I’m out cleaning and feeding they will come out and stand on those but that’s all the farther they go! The coop is about 5x10 and the frame has hardware cloth all the way around. The hen house is inside and elevated but fully finished in wood, no screen, hardware cloth or windows just vents. There is electricity in the coop with an LED light bulb and a ceramic reptile heat bulb in the hen house. I’ll try turning off the lights and heat lamp (plugged into the same timer) earlier and cover the silver insulation. Hope that does the trick. I hadn’t planned on any heat source but after two of the gals got frostbite on their comb tips I felt terrible and got a heat lamp. I fear fires but it’s only on during the day and I do work from home so I check it all the time! Thank you for your advice!!!!

 

[Cryss]

Food should be removed from the coop area at night so it doesn’t attract critters. Water can start but should not be inside the henhouse. Btw the henhouse is usually called the coop and the outdoor fenced in area is called the run. So keep the water in the run. Water, indeed all sources of moisture, inside the coop can build up condensation in there and on the chickens. In winter this is the reason for frostbite. Other sources of moisture in the coop are the respiration’s of each bird, and their poop. Adding a heat source can actually make it worse with cold air hitting heat and moisture. The answer isn’t heat, it’s ventilation.
Of course your question was about them going in at night. So back to that. I agree you shouldn’t use the auto door till they are consistent. And the light outside should be off so they face low the natural seasonal light patterns. Sudden light and sudden dark is frightening and confusing to them. As it gets gradually dark they want to go to their safe place. The most common way to teach them where their safe place is, is to lock them inside the coop with food and water (one of the rare times to put food and water inside) and don’t let them out for like a week. They get real familiar with the space and begin to feel comfortable there. They start to recognize it as home.
As for chickens needing 14 hours of light, this is true but seasonal. Are your birds laying eggs yet? Chickens get natural light for extended time in the spring and summer. This stimulates them to lay eggs. As days get shorter they get less light and slow down egg production. Some even stop. It picks up again as days get long again. You do not need to supply them with artificial light unless you are needing them to lay consistently in all seasons. Perhaps you sell lots of eggs so you need that to happen. One thing to remember is their bodies have a set lifetime number of eggs. By making conditions to lay all year long they finish laying much younger in life. So it’s a personal choice depending on what you need from them. I don’t use lights myself. I can wait a bit for spring. I don’t try to make a living selling eggs. They’re just for the family and a few friends.
Geez I do ramble don’t I? You could help us give you more precise advice by posting a few photos of your coop setup, inside as well as outside. The run too. Do you have it critter proofed with hardware cloth? What kind of ventilation does your coop have? Where are you located? Texas chickens have different needs than Ontario Canada chickens.
This site has taught me sooo much. You are in a good place here to learn the best practices. Once you know what to do it becomes easy and you can enjoy your birdie babies. WELCOME TO BYC!