Desperate for help - roost pole craziness

[RaeRae2]

I have had chickens my entire life and have NEVER seen anything so ridiculous as this. I have 13 hens and 1 rooster I raised from day old chicks from McMurray. They are coming up on 4 months old now.

Every night when it's time to go to bed, these chickens turn into crazed lunatics. They cannot just go up on the roost poles and go to sleep! They fight, claw, bite, knock each other off, flog each other, scream, and actually try to sit on TOP of each other. They will climb up on top of each other in a pig pile formation until the one on the bottom is crushed and is screamin and fighting to get free.

Last night my husband and I sat in the coop and watched, and several of them were even flying straight up into the flourescent light fixture which is attached flat on the ceiling. They would crash into it and then act shocked there was no place to sit up there! WTH!

The coop is huge - about 14'x14'x8'. They have 3 roosting options depending on how high they want to get. It is a step up type configuration so they can hop on one, then hop up another level of they want. The bottom level is only 12" from the ground so it's not a big leap. But they will try to fly from the nest box platform all the way on the other side of the room and make it to the very top roost, which is near the ceiling. It will take 3 attempts and cdrash landings to get it right, instead of hopping up from level 1 to level 3.

There is enough roosting space for 50 birds - literally. And all 14 of them will try to crowd into a 2 foot section on one end. They pig pile and knock each other down. We watched the rooster crash all the way from the top to the bottom last night twice.

You should see the feathers fly! OMG it's insane. The Hamburgs have NO tail feathers no from all the fighting and drama surrounding the roost pole.

They used to be in a different coop with an entirely different roost configuration and they did the same thing. Every night you could hear constant screaming and commotion for about 1 hour at bed time. Then I'd go in there and some would be huddled on the floor, some in the window sill, some piled on top of each other, and 90% of the roost pole is completely empty.

As for the poles themselves, they have options between round cedar log and flat 2x6 boards.

How can I stop this?!?!? I am desperate! I cannot stand to see all these beautiful feathers being ripped out every night with all this stupidness.

During the day, they get along perfectly. Nobody pecks or fights. They take naps together all laying together close but spread out in the dirt.

PLEASE GIVE ME SOME IDEAS.

 

[itsren]

I'm sorry! I'm a newbie. Your post caught my attention because my three get a little crazy trying to sit on top of each other on occasion when there's plenty of clean space to sit somewhere else. Or, they'll all stand in the same place around the feeder and try to eat from the exact same spot even though there is a lot of room around the feeder (I have a feeder intended for a flock, and I only have 3 birds). I'm still trying to understand the mind of a chicken. Maybe it's a "the grass is greener where you're standing" mentality?

I don't know. Hopefully someone here can help you figure this out.

 

[mondotomhead]

OMG! My chickens do this too. The older ones (1 year old) jocky for postion and will step on their co-mates to get next to their favorite. Of course the one stepped on freaks out and falls off the roost. If someone doesn't like who they find themselves next to they will peck the offender until he leaves or falls off. And....the expression on the one left on the roost. I can almost hear them say "HA"!

My 3 month olds (10) do the same thing. One night I watched them and actually saw one bird walk over 6 of his sisters so he could roost next to someone he likes better. Oh, the squawking! Two fell off before he could get himself over to his favorite.

I think this is just chicken behavior and not much you can do unless you know who wants to sit next to who and you physically put them there. (I've done this just to keep the peace

)


Its really quite comical. I'm going to try and video this tonight.

 

[RaeRae2]

Ok, well at least I'm not alone! It is very stressful for me to watch them fall from 7 feet up on the air. We are going to take down that top roost so they can't get up that high in the first place. I have tried different things - lights on, lights off, covering the roosts in fleece wraps, fans on, fans off. Just different things to try to make them comfortable and happy but it makes no difference.

I have a poor little Dark Cornish hen who has bad legs and a deformed chest. She is very top heavy and has a really hard time roosting as it is. She has taken to staying off by herself and sitting on something that isn't a roost pole. But last night somebody flew over and landed on top of her and she started screaming and fell off.

I am very close to making her a cage up high in one corner that I can set her into at night and close the door on her. I can't stand to see those big ones knock her down. She is a deformed little runt, and is the sweetest pet chicken I've ever had.

 

[mondotomhead]

Quote:
I would definitely do this too. The poor thing.

 

[Moonkit]

Is it possible that your roosts are simply too high? Do you have any pictures so we can see the setup? Being young, they could also still be working out the pecking order, and thus, who gets the 'prime' roosting spots.

Or.. you simply cannot fathom the intricacies of the chicken mind and have set up your roosts in a manner that defies conventional chicken logic. Silly human.

 

[RaeRae2]

LOL yes that could be it too! There are 3 poles - all varying heights from about 12" to 4' to 7'. So they could choose low, middle or high. I don't have any photos here unfortunately.

 

[Moonkit]

Traditionally.. chickens want to be on the highest poles, whether they can reach it safely or not. 12'' to 4' is a sizeable gap, especially for new/untalented fliers. We have a deck surrounding our backyard pond with a bench on it. The lighter body hens can reach the top of the bench easily, but the heavier ones have to hop first onto the deck, then to the seat of the bench, then up to the back of it. Our silkie and frizzle hens can just look at it, throw themselves in the direction of the top of the bench and usually crash into the side of it or the deck.

 

[Time-Out]

I'm inclined to blame the parents. Mine go to bed so quietly and calmly...

My sebright cockerel snuggles up to his sabelpoot girlfriend on one far end, on the other end, as far from everyone as is physically possible are the three vorwerks and their serogate aunt (an araucana). Somewhere in the middle are the other two araucanas, but not so close to the vorwerks as to give them nightmares. And a broody in the nest. No squabbling *satisfied sigh*

Sorry I don't have anything helpful to add. In your position, I'd be just the same: concerned! I'd have also tried different things in case there's more or less ventilation/daylight on that end, but you say you've done that

 

[Brookliner]

My broody hen and her chicks (lol) who are now 12 weeks old all go to roost early they take the positions at the top to the chicken ladder. The broody hen and the smallest which is a Mille Fleur d'unccle pullet sit behind them on the poop board scrunched into the corner (she still likes to get under the broody hen -if my broody wasn't a cochin bantam she would knock her over). My cochin frizzle and small Nankin hen sit together at the other end of the roost and my 4 Americuna 18month olds roost by themselves in another part of the coop. If I turn off the light early when I close them up and no one is on the roost yet it sounds like world war 3 for about 5 minutes then quiet.