ex-battery hens / rescue birds, not roosting like expected

[Xtineart]

Hi all,

I've got a couple of rescue hens, I think they've been barn-eggers and since I got them home they've insisted on following me about like lambs, crying for me or staring though the door waiting if I go out of sight of them. They seem to like being in the same room as me, often in the house so they can uff up, lie down on the hard wooden floor and fall asleep. I've had to carry them into their coop in the evening and lock them in otherwise they'd never go. I've noticed that even in there they prefer to shove all the straw and chips out the way and sleep on the bare metal floor instead of going up to a perch or roost point, or sitting in the comfy areas. Is this something that's just a throw back to their life before joining me, will they ever change and should I be worried at all?

I'm currently trying to leave them out in the garden alone for longer and longer periods of time as they will have to realise I cant be there all the time.

 

[Judy]

I would just give them what cofort and affection I could manage, and let them work out their life. They will probably eventually roost and seem more like "normal" chickens, as they addjust to their new life.

I would probably try to figure out a way to prevent their sleeping on bare metal, though. Perhaps you could fasten an old scrap of carpet or even towel to the floor, for a while.