Dang bird, flew the coop!

[Comet Mum]

I put the finishing touches on the new spacious coop today, just in time to move the 4 birds to their bigger digs before we go away this weekend. They had been living in a tiny tractor-style coop/run with some free range time in my fenced garden.

The girls are 29 weeks old, but we've only had them about 6 weeks, so they did not "grow up" with us and we've not had to catch them often... I successfully caught and transferred the first three without much trouble. The 4th however was another story. After much squawking and running, I brought a sheet out to try to "net" her. She flew over the fence and ran into the woods.

Maybe she'll come back for bed time. Maybe some critter will have a skinny chicken for dinner...

So, how do you catch untame chickens?

 

[TaLani]

Maybe a coon trap (one that won't harm her) w/ treats inside, throw treats inside the run area and make a big fuss over the treats, maybe use a net of some sort -we bought a catching net that we've only had to use a time or 2. Try catching her again when the sun goes down or she might fly back into the run tonight on her own too. Oh, did I mention treats? He he he! We've had one of our EE's (as well as others) fly out of our run and she bedded down for the night behind the coop and we easily caught her - I don't think that chickens see very well at night because we caught her pretty easy. We just bought some netting at Lowe's this past wkend (4ft wide by 50ft long) for just under $14.00 per roll so that we can cover the run since about 1/2 dozen of our chickens escape so frequently & the stray dogs in our neighborhood are bound to get ahold of one of them sooner or later. Hope you get your girl back soon!

 

[BeckyLa]

I would leave the door open into the tractor since she is used to it as home. I'm sure she'll come back there tonight to roost. Then just shut the door and catch her when she is asleep. It's always best to wait till well after dark and catch them when they are sleeping when it's time to transfer them to someplace new.

 

[Fudgie]

It took us 2 weeks to catch a hen we bought from a sale. I figured if she could last that long on her own, she could go in with the others when we finally caught her.....yes a coon trap works good. Slap some peanut butter on the trigger and put some feed on it. You might have to sprinkle a little bit near the door way to get her used to it. She will get hungry and come looking for it.

 

[birdlover]

I agree with Becky. Make the tractor so she can get inside and wait for her to come back there to roost. That's home to her. I sure do HOPE she doesn't end up dinner for some critter!!

Poor thing must be frightened to death.

 

[Comet Mum]

Good news, she's back! Thanks to everyone for the helpful replies. I wish I'd known about the night time transfer before I tried it during the day.

When I let the dogs out this afternoon, they flushed her out and she flew back into the fenced garden to get away from the terriers. She went back into her little tractor at dusk and with the help of my husband, we were able to get her out of there and transfer her to the new coop.

Thanks again for all of your support.

 

[Attack Chicken]

Glad she's back

 

[birdlover]

Thank goodness!!!! So happy for her and you.

 

[BeckyLa]