Disinfecting perches?

[Birdielee]

Do your birds have to jump down off a perch?
Can you go take pictures of your set up today?

The foot too.

Here is Ellis's hen house. She almost always sleeps on the right, on the perch above the popdoor. She flies straight up onto the perch from the floor, and to get down she walks to the left and hops off the nest box to the floor. I put the hay there on the floor when i started working on her foot and noticed that she clumps down there

 

[Birdielee]

She sleeps in the henhouse after i PUT her in there. First she sleeps outside, almost all the way to the right of the perch.
When I bleached her perches a while ago, her foot improved a bit. I dipped her foot in the bleachwater solution, while i was at it.

 

[Birdielee]

To leave her run, she hops up on this wire (edit: i didnt get a photo of the wire), but I don't think it's the problem. There's also the chicken wire she scratched up out of the dirt, which is a problem and could be THE problem. And this little nub of kiwiplant. Which is in her walkpath but... could that really be the problem? It seems so unlikely. She's out and about in the yard, too. But it's not a real pokey yard.

 

[K0k0shka]

Does she ever go into the coop on her own, or do you have to put her there every time?

 

[K0k0shka]

The chicken wire could very well be it. Another thing that might be too hard on her feet is the ramp. The blocks are very tall and have sharp edges, and might be digging into her feet, especially as she needs to grab onto them to climb against gravity on her way up. You said you need to put her in the coop yourself - maybe that’s why she doesn’t go in on her own. She’s avoiding the ramp. See if you can use something else for the cleats. Something less tall, and with rounded/sanded edges.

 

[Birdielee]

The chicken wire could very well be it. Another thing that might be too hard on her feet is the ramp. The blocks are very tall and have sharp edges, and might be digging into her feet, especially as she needs to grab onto them to climb against gravity on her way up. You said you need to put her in the coop yourself - maybe that’s why she doesn’t go in on her own. She’s avoiding the ramp. See if you can use something else for the cleats. Something less tall, and with rounded/sanded edges.

Ok i didn't think of the ramp as a problem. It doesn't keep her from going in, though. She goes in and out to eat and lay her egg every day. She likes to be outside. It needs more ventilation.

 

[Birdielee]

We have a rat issue, too, and they're really intense in her area. So she's been out a lot, just going in her yard/coop to sleep and lay eggs. Her food is elsewhere unless she's locked in for the night.
I made another coop that I'm trying to make rat proof

 

[Birdielee]

This is the most recent (big changes this week and yesterday) version of chicken house #2

 

[Kiki]

This is the most recent (big changes this week and yesterday) version of chicken house #2

Be sure to cover that middle area with 1/2 inch hardware cloth too. The current holes are not rat proof.

 

[Kiki]

Do you just have one chicken?