Cickens won't roost, curl up in run

[Megs501]

Nicole, I like the shelves! we lined our coop floor in linoleum for the same reason. I like it a lot!

 

[CarolJ]

Once the chicks go to the main coop/pen area, I physically put them on the roost each night until they learn that's where they're supposed to sleep. I never let mine sleep in a nest box or on the floor. That's just my preference. Usually it only takes a couple times of moving them - then they go to the roost themselves each night.

 

[Courts Clucks]

My girls still dog pile on the ground but slowly one or two will roost. A divider seperates the one year old rooster from the baby girls. But I have one rooster that has started sleeping on the ground next to the pile of girls. If I trusted him to not hurt them maybe he could start the roosting trend. Until then they can cuddle through the fence lol.

 

[OHSpartan]

so far my isa's/EE have slept on the floor of the coop, piled in the corner. I moved the roosting pole to a height of about 8" off the ground and caught 3 of them napping on it earlier today.

Tomorrow is coop cleanout day. We will be cleaning the whole coop and run in preparation for adding our CX's to the mix. (don't worry, the crowd is giving me plenty of advice on mixing meat, egg layers and pullets on a separate thread). After reading this thread, I think I will close the nesting box when I lock them up for the night and force them to roost.

Maybe the CX's and pullets will take the 8" pole, and I can convince the Domi's to take the pole 4' in the air. The white polish are hopeless; they sleep snuggled to the closest wall they happen to be near when it gets too dark for them to see (which happens at about 6 PM, BTW).

I adopted the Dominiques about a month ago. The hen was laying at the previous owner's, but has only produced one egg in four weeks (and she laid it in the nesting box). Would forcing her to roost help her egg-laying?