Chickens won't go up into coop at night.

[Tracerkid]

My 4 week old chicks will not go up into their coop at night. They go up and down all day long but come night time they huddle in the corner of the run and scream their heads off. I've crawled under and tried coaching them up there without any luck. This is the forth night that they have been in the outside coop and they won't go up. Before that I had them in an inside brooder. Any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[PirocaKeeper]

Give them time, they will get it. If you have like a ladder for them to go up, wait until is almost dark and make one go up by gently pushing it up the ladder and then the next one. Do these for a few days in a row and they will get it. I have to go through this every year with my new younger peeps.

 

[Tracerkid]

Do you think I should start before dusk?

 

[aart]

Did you leave them locked in the coop for a few days before allowing them into the run?
That can help establish that the coop is 'home' and 'safe'.
I'd leave them in the coop for a couple days/nights if you didn't before.

Do you have a cozy place for them to sleep in the coop?
4 weeks is probably too young to actually roost.
I made a huddle box for young bird new to coop, just a cardboard box big enough for them all to lay down and about 12 inches tall.
Cut one of the sides partially out for an entrance.

 

[DanEP]

Is it dark inside the coop when your trying to put them in there? Chicks don't like going into dark places. What I usually do with very young birds is some type of light in the coop right at dark. Younger birds will stay out till it's dark inside the coop then they don't want to go in there, but if it's dark outside but light in the coop they will usually go in to get out of the dark. There kind of like kids they don't wanna go to bed and get caught in the dark. They'll outgrow it as they get older and are willing to go to bed earlier.

 

[arotherham]

My chickens won't even go in the second story part. I don't know what to do.

 

[Tracerkid]

THEY DID IT!!!!!! SO GLAD I DIDN'T HAVE TO CRAWL AND GET THEM UP THERE LAST NIGHT

 

[bstala]

Mine always slept on top of our coop. That changed when we built a 6 foot tall coop,lol