Chickens won't go in coop at night!!!

[Zores Mother]

I have only been a chicken keeper since March, however; in the beginning my girls would not go into the coop at night. My neighbor suggested putting them in the coop and locking them up for a few days. That worked for me, but it was much cooler weather than it is now. Maybe someone will be able to provide more information. Wish I could help more. Good Luck

 

[TalkALittle]

I have heard that a mite infestation in the coop can cause chickens to roost outside the coop. Some mites live in the cracks of wood and come out to feed at night when the birds are on the roost. It makes sense that the birds would start looking for an alternate roosting spot.

Another thought is that your coop might be too hot or lack good ventilation. Maybe it's just nicer to sleep outside.

How big is your coop? Many times people get those tiny pre-fabs that don't really fit as many birds as they claim to. Then as the birds grow, there just isn't enough room in the coop so some start roosting start roosting elsewhere. Once a few start the desire to stay as a flock takes over and the rest join.

If only a few are sleeping outside they might be being bullied by the others. It's not unusual for a more dominant bird to prevent a lower ranking bird from entering the coop or getting on the roost. It is a bigger problem in small coops where space is tight and birds can't give each other the space needed to avoid conflict. Sometimes it isn't so much that the dominant bird is actively bullying, but that there is a submissive bird that is going out of it's way not to upset the dominant bird. The submissive bird sleeps outside to avoid the conflict it knows will happen if it tries to roost inside. Again, this is common in too small coops with inadequate roost space.

Lastly, predator or pest activity in the coop can keep birds from wanting to roost inside. Mice or rat activity might be bothering them. Or if something got into the coop and scared them they now associate the coop with fear. Sometimes birds won't go in the coop if they've encountered a snake in there.

 

[cooperleon]

I have the same problem. My hens went in the coop several months, then stopped. We've had to chase them down the last month to try to get them in. We finally stopped trying. We did a couple of weeks ago see them in and locked them up for a week, but after we let them out they went back to roosting on top of our Polaris! I don't want to have to search all of the land for eggs when they start laying. They are 4 months old. HELP!

 

[Gayle Campbell]

Thanks, everyone for these posts! I'm a newby and my 5 girls are 6 weeks old! Have been in their run/coop for about 10 days but would not go by themselves into the coop at night. Huddled every evening at the bottom of the ramp! Last night I put a light in there and left them alone until after dark. Presto! They found their way up the ramp and into the coop! I'll keep using the light for a while but thanks for all the posts! I'm going to depend on this site for a lot of advice, I can already tell!

 

[101charley]

So, I just added 2 new hens and they will not go into the coop at night. They seem to be so traumatized that they won't go up the ramp. I put food on the ramp and inside the the coop - doesn't help. When I go into the coop they run underneath where it is impossible to reach them and they stay there all night. If I even come close to the coop they run underneath. There is one older hen who does use the coop at night. The younger ones (4 months old) will not go inside.

Any suggestions. With winter coming and the rain we have been having in Tennessee I am afraid they will get sick all huddled up on the ground.

 

[cooperleon]

So, I just added 2 new hens and they will not go into the coop at night.  They seem to be so traumatized that they won't go up the ramp.  I put food on the ramp and inside the the coop - doesn't help.  When I go into the coop they run underneath where it is impossible to reach them and they stay there all night.  If I even come close to the coop they run underneath.  There is one older hen who does use the coop at night.  The younger ones (4 months old) will not go inside.

Any suggestions.  With winter coming and the rain we have been having in Tennessee I am afraid they will get sick all huddled up on the ground. 

We had the same problem,but started feeding them with crumbs out in the yard and then again at dusk but walked while dropping the crumbs. They followed us all the way into the coop. We are still having to do it after two weeks, but at least it works.

 

[mylittlehippie]

I just adopted 4 new hens. They all seem full grown but ages were unknown. My other girls have always used the coop. Any new chicks we got always went into the coop with the adults just by following them. These 4 won't. One of them used the coop in their quaranteen run but none of the others did. Now none of them use any coop. Will they eventually follow the others? I've tried the light with no success. My original girls are almost overly friendly And already share food with the new ones so I don't think it's that. It's getting below freezing here at night. They don't even sleep together. They're kind of all over. One sleeps on the bbq which I find funny but it's certainly not warm. I'll try feeding them in the coop tomorrow. Thanks for any more tips!

 

[cooperleon]

Since we started dropping crumbs in late October they have continued to follow and go into the co-op/ run. Tonight they all were in by themshelves without leading them with crumbs!! Just be consistent and patient.

 

[Excogitate]

Trying locking then in for a couple days. Been in coop/run for about a week now just like the others huddled up in corner under coop. I will keep you posted. Normally do you keep food and water in run and coop or just run?

 

[Huntley]

I as having the same problem and used the light as others suggested. It worked great. I used a low watt florscent vulb and about 20 minutes before dark they were all in. The previous 5 nights I had to go out after dark and put them in- bulb idea worked great for me.