Do you count your chickens before bed?

[B-Goock]

Can't. There's too many. 4 coops & quail cage.

 

[Duckee]

I count my chickens before I let them out into the run or free range AND when I lock them up for the night. Every day!
I only have 14 hens. Dont know how well I would do at counting 50+ in the bitter cold. LOL

 

[Folly's place]

It's a lot harder to count moving targets during the day! Counting at night while they are roosting is the only thing that works here.
Mary

 

[Ratbird]

Counting the dead ones is easy... and just assume if you don't have those, you have them all.

Unless some have been predated or a silly hen has gone broody outside the coop and will become dead in the very near future.

 

[Ratbird]

I have 56 adults (chickens, ducks, geese) and 102 chicks and juveniles. I don’t count the chicks in the brooders and grow out areas. If no one’s dead, I assume they are all there. I do count all the adults in various coops, which have 10 or less.

But in my main coop, which has 20-30 adults and almost that many juveniles that have graduated from the brooder, it’s too hard to put eyes on each one at night. Most of them sleep in clumps. I do glance around and make sure my favorites are accounted for. Sometimes that means I have to push some apart so I can look between and under them. It’s too hard to count all of them that way. I figure if there’s no sign of trouble and no one is still wandering around outside when it’s time to close up, then they’re probably all in there.

I’m with you. Usually make sure my favorites are there. Also i have to put a few to bed manually every night so they get counted.
I usually do a general count during the day, in breed or color groups. 4 of those, 6 of those, 3 of those etc. if one of those is not around, I’ll make a mental note to keep an eye out. But this has failed me also. I’ve had a broody turn up with chicks before and found her nest. So I’d see her off the nest while she was eating and she’d be accounted for but was never on the roost at night.
It’s just too difficult to count everyone accurately as they do huddle etc.

 

[sarahconnor]

How many of you count your chickens when you put them up at night? How many chickens would it take for you to give up counting?

I ALWAYS take a head count when putting them in after they range. Sadly we have to be outside with them the whole time they are ranging due to predators, and when I put them back in I count them, but other nights when they have been in day, I just open the door and if they all look good I close them up for the night without counting.

 

[ILoveDaffy]

How many of you count your chickens when you put them up at night? How many chickens would it take for you to give up counting?

700. that is how many it would take. Seriously. I have 3

 

[Friendly_Lurker]

I wish I could. I think I’ve got thirty assorted species?

 

[Ann With A Plan]

I count them at night. Tonight I thought they were all inside, but couldn't count because they were moving around too fast. So I looked around outside the coop and found one standing alone at the corner of the yard.

 

[DustyDivas]

I only have three hens so I say each name while giving a gentle stroke and say goodnight to them... Yes, it's completely loony