Chickens won't roost?

[CheekyChicky44]

Okay my girls won’t perch at night. It will be dark out, and I look out and I see six little yellow legs pointing at me, from their run.

I am not sure why they are doing that. They used to go in there by themselves and now I have to usher them in and they complain about it. Little about the coup: a ramp leads up into it and it contains two roosts and a light for cold nights. Any ideas? Just curious. Thank you.

 

[pokemonshop]

The chickens don't have to roost, they sometimes don't like it. One of my chickens is to fat to fly up on the roost he is fine and has no change whatsoever

 

[Newwell]

Gosh, who can know the mind of a chicken??? I try

with little success. How old are they & how long have they been living in the coop? What kind of roost materials are you using. Mine HATED a 1 1/2" dowel, so I changed it to a 2x4 in the coop. Now they use it.

 

[cravenchx]

Do they need a ladder for the roosts?
Are there rodents?
I might not have a light on, maybe they are
sleepy!?!

 

[ki4got]

try turning the light on before it gets dark, and maybe they'll go in where the light is?

or feed them in there, just before bedtime. maybe a special treat. mine absolutely LOVE cinnamon graham crackers.

i used the crackers when i first started letting my dorkings (gotten as adults) free range, to encourage them to go to bed a bit early... that way i made sure they weren't trying to squeeze into the bantam house. LOL the big guy does go in it, and then there's no room for anyone else practically! (then again he does take up one entire roost, and part of the next one...)

 

[cjatthefarm]

Quote:
....'a light for cold nights'......maybe it's too warm.....or too light......?

 

[CheekyChicky44]

Thanks for the replies. I have been feeding them in their lately thinking that they were still hungry so I will probably leave them that options. I think maybe too that the light is disrupting their sleep. We have had it on to keep them laying as well as keeping them warm, about an extra hour a night. It’s getting dark around here around five now. Any suggestions on proper lighting? I could use some to keep them laying and roosting.

Also, rodents: I have noticed droppings on the outside next to the rodent proof barrel we keep their food in. I have kept an eye out for droppings because of the change in weather, and haven't seen any in the run or roost (both are reinforced with hardware wire and I haven’t noticed any gaps larger than 1/4 inch.) If there are rodents on the outside, how can I get rid of them?

 

[cravenchx]

My girls and boy only have food in the coop!
Treats are a different story!

 

[Eggcessive]

I set a light on a timer on at 5:00 AM and off by 5:00 PM. 12-14 hrs is plenty for winter laying. The light needs to go off by dusk so they can see to get on their roosts before dark.

 

[cravenchx]

Quote:
Just curious, can you turn the light off early? Say, 9:00am?
The sun is up by then.