Clipped Wings and Chicken Still Escapes

[mkunzphoto]

We clipped our chickens' wings and one of them is still getting out of the run. We have the wire nearly 6 ft high. The coop itself is right next to the edge of the run and I'm wondering if she is jumping up on the door of the coop and then over the rest of the wire. I can't close the coop door because the water and nesting box are in there - not to mention the smell that would accumulate!
Any suggestions on how to keep her in the run?

Also, my hens are 6 months old and not laying yet - is that normal?

 

[sumi]

I'm guessing moving the coop/fence would be difficult? I would try and fit something around top of the coop where you suspect she's jumping up, to stop her getting onto the top of the coop. Or make the fence higher around the coop, if practical and possible. And escape artist can be a pain, I know!

Some breeds, especially the heavier breeds take up to 6 months or even longer to start laying and the average age for a hen coming into lay is around 25 weeks. What breeds have you got?

 

[centrarchid]

Show a picture of clipped wings. Both need to be clipped. Done properly, the bird will not be able to get 4 feet up even by clambering.

 

[mkunzphoto]

I thought only one wing needs to be clipped? I will try to get a picture up, but I may not have a chance for a few days. We tried to clip the first 10 feathers all the way down to where the shorter feathers grow (really technical - I know). We have one bird who even flew up to the top of our 6 foot fence!

I have a Silver Laced Wyandotte, an Americauna, and two who's breeds I'm not sure of. One is black with brown tips and the other is a medium brown.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

We have to clip both wings for even our big, heavy Plymouth Rocks not to fly over a 4' fence. Our lighter-bodied birds such as the white Leghorns, we have to take the primaries AND the secondaries.

It's parrots that you only clip one wing.

 

[JackE]

I must be lucky. I clip only one wing. Heard that throws them out of balance when they try to lift off. I have one hen, an EE, who jumped my poultry net fence. I clipped one wing, success. Then practically a year later, after she went through a molt and got her new feathers, she went over again. One clipped wing was all it too, to make her a homebody.

 

[centrarchid]

As a kid we had many gamehens (actually pullets in lay) kept in henhouse. They flew as well as any domestic chicken breed although not at well as parrots except where jumping was critical for short flights, then the games are stronger than parrots. I was allowed to experiment with clipping to limit impacts birds had on light fixtures. When all else was equal, a bird clipped on both sides was less capable of vertical flight than those clipped on one side only. The single side birds could compensate to a limited degree for the very short vertical flights needed to get them into trouble. In most instances for my needs, a single wing clipped did the job but I did cut both wings on some and varied how close cuts where made. I even treated secondaries as well. Bilateral cutting very close to base of feathers was most effective. Cut close enough, such birds may as well have been naked and even clambering was shut down. Without clambering, even best birds had trouble making 24". My birds can jump.