Chickens won't get back in brooder, maybe stuck?(RESOLVED)

[chickenlvr2323]

So my 'New Jersey reds' are kept in a large bowl shaped brooder that is in a large dog cage, and they as of recently have learned to jump out. usually they jump back in soon after, but today they have not gone back in at all, and I have seen them trying. I want to help them, but every time I reach anywhere near them they sprint away and I cannot catch them. Is there a way that I can make them go back in on their own, or is there a way to pick them up without them running off?
Edit: we've moved them to a larger 'coop' outside (it's in a barn and has a heating lamp) and they cannot jump out of this one.

 

[chickenlvr2323]

P.S. I don't know exactly what they are. They are a red brown color, and when my father dumped them on me he told me they were 'New Jersey reds' but I can't find any info on that, and I also have no idea how old they are but based on their feathers I would say that they are 5 weeks old.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Do you have a photo of this set up? And where is it located (inside a room in house, in garage, in a shed?) Have you handled the chicks at all? Anyone else there that can help herd or catch them?

 

[Banana01]

They will go back at least near the cage when the nightime comes. What type of lighting setup do you have? If it were narural sunlight, they would wander back near the cage as it got dark, and eventually learn to get back in. You can help them by putting them in after the lights go out, and building a ramp for them to enter at night.

My chicks used to be spread all over my yard, but then after a couple days i had them sleeping in a cage by my house all of them together, and now they climb up and jimp inside on their own.

 

[chickenlvr2323]

Do you have a photo of this set up? And where is it located (inside a room in house, in garage, in a shed?) Have you handled the chicks at all? Anyone else there that can help herd or catch them?

They are actually in my room, I don't have a photo because of technical issues, and the only person who wanted to help catch them wasn't able to.

 

[NatJ]

they as of recently have learned to jump out... Is there a way that I can make them go back in on their own, or is there a way to pick them up without them running off?

I recommend you put a cover on the pen-- maybe something like a window screen, that will still let air and light through.

To get them back in, if you are able to open one side of the pen, you may be able to herd them in. Herding them in is easier if you can arrange a sort of funnel shape (maybe using a wall and some boxes or furniture), so they cannot go in so many directions.

For catching chicks, it usually works best for me to move slowly toward them as they move slowly away, until I have them worked into a corner. Once they are in the corner, I might grab quickly or slowly depending on how they are acting and what worked the last time. (Or get them into a corner, then put something across the corner to make a pen, and THEN grab the chicks from that temporary pen.)