Getting chicks in the Coop at night

[Marinefam2053]

How old are birds?
Are there younger birds too?
Did you leave them confined to coop only for several days to 'home' them to coop?
Pics of coop and run, inside and out, always help.

Oh, and...Welcome to BYC! @Marinefam2053
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View attachment 1851940

Thank you,
My 5 older girls are about 8/9 weeks old. They are currently handling the coop like pros. My younger girls are 4/5 weeks old and still in the brooder. (Can’t wait to get them integrated in the coop. I just have anxiety about how to go about it.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I don't think you ever said how old they are. If they are young, they get better with a little age and experience. When they have always lived in a brooder with artificial light, the mysteries of sunlight and dark take some getting used to! Also, some of ours slept on the floor for a bit until they decided that chickens are supposed to roost. They all got it sorted out by themselves eventually. I would not leave any outside at night due to predators. We had one that wanted to swing all night in the grape vine. Sorry, no!

 

[aart]

Thank you,
My 5 older girls are about 8/9 weeks old. They are currently handling the coop like pros. My younger girls are 4/5 weeks old and still in the brooder. (Can’t wait to get them integrated in the coop. I just have anxiety about how to go about it.

Pics of coop and run, inside and out, always help.

And here's some tips about...

Integration Basics:
It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.

 

[starri33]

When we built our new coop, we gave our flock (older birds) time to figure it out on their own, then we closed off the old coop, they continued to try and get in the old one and would roost on the bars we had outside of it, 4 days of going out at night, picking them up and putting them on their roost. They figured it out.