Chickens won't come in at night

[Buck Creek Chickens]

i've got 2 that never got the hang of it, they aren't allowed to free range like there friends

 

[Bluebyrd]

Mine have just started to go in by themselves, ( 3 days now)

About a week ago I started a new tactic: before dark I turned the light on and then waited until after it was dark to go out and put them in....(they were alot easier to catch by the way! all sleepy and cuddly). It wasn't long before they were all going in on thier own. The first few nights there were a couple of stragglers, but they got the hang of it pretty quick.. Mine are between 5 -6 weeks old and have been out for about 3 weeks. (pretty warm weather here) our coop is about 2 1/2 feet up. I have food and water inside and out.

I think the next hurdle will be when I turn the light out, I will find out soon!

Good Luck!

 

[farmin'chick]

My "good" chicks (LOL) also known as the Big Chicks, ( 10 and 12 weeks old) put themselves to bed, climbing an 8 foot, straight ladder since they were 6 weeks old. I trained them by putting chick feed, in their sight, on the rungs of the ladder, dribbling it ahead of them, until they went in. The next couple weeks I just let them see me sprinkle a handful of feed inside the chick door at bedtime. Now, they put themselves up, 1/2 hour before the "bad" chicks (LOL). The "bad" chicks are 100 chicks that share a chick house. They only have to go up two little steps to go in. Always, since they were babies, the last 20 or so have just about REFUSED to go in. The calls go like this..."Bedtime for chick chicks! Go to bed, chicks!" (the first 25 go up) Go to BED, chicks! (the second 25 go up). "Okay, I'm TIRED of this. You'd BETTER go up in the chick house!" (the next 20 go up). "Last one in's a rotten egg!" (No kidding...the NEXT 10 RUN and go up.) After that, it's start closing the door. The last ones run up to look...stand around, waiting for each other....finally go up, except for the last one or two, that I usually have to push in. Oh, yeah, and of the last 40, at LEAST 15 think they have to bite me, REAL hard, before they go to bed. I just tell them, "You're moving to the top of the list!"

 

[m2wandc]

Ours is pretty high...and the girls didn't like 'climbing' either...but since we have had the crate in there with the smaller chicks they use it to sit on and then sort of fly to the top and go in...

Wish I had better pictures, because the little chicks crate isn't in that position...but rather it runs along side the coop ladder now...and has boards on top...so a lot of time the big girls sit on top of the little girl's crate and just hop up to the top of the climbing board (what is that thing called???)

 

[amamaofmany]

We have 14 standard pullets, and 12 bantams of mixed breeds (with 2 roos that we know of in the bantams)

All the standards go into the henhouse without being coaxed and have since day one.

The bantams huddle under the coop and peep and cry as if they haven't been running in and out of there all blessed day. They were there in the hen house in a dog crate for about 3 weeks until we felt safe letting them mingle with the big girls (they are 4 weeks younger) We gave them a long time to adjust to the coop and the older girls.

During the first week we let them out of the dog crate, the big girls wouldn't let them out into the run at all, so the banties stayed all day in the hen house (its big so that wasn't much of a problem) and they would all go into the dog crate onto their perches. As soon as the little idiots were "allowed" out into the run by the big girls, they spent the whole day running up and down the ramp, in and out of the hen house.

That night - not one of them would walk out from under the henhouse to join the big girls inside! We had to poke a long bamboo pole through the hardware cloth and kind of sweep them out into the run so someone in there could scoop them up and put them inside!

It is hilarious! This has gone on for two weeks. The silkies are especially chirpy about being under there, as if they were stranded and can't find their way out.

They are so goofy.

 

[-_-Kelly-_-]

it depends if your chicks jump. are they jumpy chicks or not? just give them sum time. eventually they will get cold or be chased by some animal into the coop at night. no not really but try showing the coop to them and throwing some food into the coop

 

[cmom]

I agree with the other posts. I do have a night light in my coop. In the beginning every evening I would put some scratch grains in the coop to encourage them to go in. Now they go in and no more treats. As I got them used to it I cut back on the treats. I did shut them in for a few days in the beginning to get them used to their coop then started the treats in the evenings. Also your ladder to your pop door may discourage them from going in. maybe put the pop door closer to the ground. I have two pop doors in one of my coops. Also I raised the coop up a foot off the ground and they jump up to get in with no ladder of any type. I have three roosts made of 2x4's with the 4" side up. one at 18" one at 3' and one at 4'.

This is a picture of the two pop doors also I have moved this coop and raised it since this picture was taken.

 

[ScrltOTara]

I have tried removing the feeder from the run and leaving ONLY the feeder in the coop around dinner time, thinking they'll get hungry and go in.

My biggest concern is whether or not it's just too high. Two of my chickens are jumpers, they fly down from the perch at the same level all the time. My white sultan is really not too bright and can't get on my 1 foot perch. But she walks the ladder fine. I have a silver speckled hamburg with one foot that has crooked toes, she manages, though.

All four come DOWN the ladder just fine in the mornings when we open the henhouse doors!

 

[Big Chicken Little]

I don't think it is the height as much as it is the turn. Have you tried just a straight run in? They may not know what to do at the turn.

 

[ScrltOTara]

Well, we built a new henhouse (it's bigger and "works" better). The entrance is 1 1/2 FEET off the ground. They go in and out all day to eat (the feeder is now exclusively inside), but still sit by the door or on a roost when it gets dark and cry and cry until we come out and put them inside for the night.

And even when we do - we have to put one in, close the door, put another in, close the door - otherwise they come right back out!

Tara