I must admit, I've never gotten up to see what time chickens get up. What time, on the average, do chickens wake up and get ready for their chicken day? I hear roosters before daylight, but are chickens up and ready to go on outside then also?
Ours are getting up right now at a few minutes before 5 am. There is daylight but the sun doesn't come up for about 10 minutes yet at that time. Roosters, however, can crow at any time. Depends on their mood, surroundings, and whether or not they feel like you should be awake
Mine are up with the sun. So they are up super early these days. I went out the other day at 5am and my girls were already up. In the winter when it's darker later, obviously, they will sleep in much later.
I think it just depends on how much light they have. I sometimes hear my rooster at 2:30 in the morning, probably when there is a full moon. And I often hear him well before daylight. I'm not convinced that they really sleep all night. I just think they roost up there where their instincts say it is safer while it is dark. I'll often find someof mine still on the roosts well after daylight when I go down to let them out. Of course, the girls may just be avoiding the rooster.
Our rooster starts crowing at about 4:45am. But when I enter the barn at 6:30 the ladies are all still on the roost. They are awake, but who could sleep through all that crowing!
My roosters crow periodically through night with definite up tick as dawn approaches. Approximately dawn rooster comes down and runs about with feathers fluffed. He chases everyone about in his family group as they come off roost. He mates with many of the hens. Chicks and their broody mothers seem to be ignored.
Sunrise is around 4:50/5:00 am, starts getting light around 4:15/4:30am and thats when Rocky(Plymouth White Rock) makes his annoucement that he is up and ready to start his day. Let them out to roam about 5:30. First things first,got to get the coffee on.
Ours usually fly down from the roost at 5:35 a.m. Central Time. I know this because I have made a point to get up and see them fly down. We have a very high roost and they actually fly down. I learned a lot watching them; they need a clean landing strip. I moved a stump and have been careful where I place other toys for them. BTW, we have five hens, no Roo's
I let my out of the coop at 7:30 am and the rooster immediately is crowing. One day I heard him crowing inside the coop before the 'let out' time. But he does just crow throughout the day for no apparent reason.
