Hello I have chicks that are around 10 weeks old. Does anyone have any tricks to get these critters back in the coop at night. So far it has been a side show, me chasing them around catching one at a time and putting them in the door. Any suggestions? thanks rangere
If you have the luxury of waiting until they go to sleep, you can pick them up and place them on the roost.
We have hundreds of the little buggers..it takes them quite awhile to learn the trick of going to bed..typical kids like to stay out past bed time...I use the same technique as you do other than my 5 year old is chicken crazy and it's his "Job" he tells me so I let him do the catching.I don't rush to begin putting them to bed-the darker it is the easier it is but with as many as we have it takes quite awhile to get them all in..a head count to make sure and a final look through to make sure they are all fine.
Waiting until it is almost dark seems to be the best way. I usually end up plucking some of them off a fence or whatever they have found to roost on outside, and putting them in the house. They really don't like being out in the dark, so they learn pretty quick to go in on their own. With my younger chicks, I keep their feeders in their house, turn a light on and put a treat of oats in their feeder, which they go nuts for, and they run right in for me! The only reason I have trouble with them not going into the house when they are older, is that they have to learn to go into a new, unfamiliar house when I put them in with the big girls. GOOD LUCK!
That's what I had to do last night. It was the girls' first night in the coop and my husband and I did a two man bedtime. I put them in the coop door and he put them on their roosts. I am hoping that as they get used to the whole situation, they'll figure out to head inside before the door closes at night.
What I do is wait till dark. I have a light in the coop, turn it on. They see the light inside and do just like Carol Ann, the come into the light. First night the looked confused. After that it's like follow the leader. Last night one of my BOs some how flew to the top of the 6 foot kennel. I counted the kids as the went in and 25. Panic set in and started the search. When I found her she was was watching me the whole time. I love my Buff orps.
I seem to be sensing a common theme in that all of you have just recently put your chicks out in their coops. In my experience, which is not vast, you need to leave them confined to their coop for several days before allowing them to roam free during the day. As long as I've done this my chickens have always returned to their coop at dusk of their own accord. Even if they are "pets" it's not cruel to confine them until they learn where home is.
Our 'chicsks' wait until 8pm . ..dusk.. open at 7am and out until 8pm.. that seems to be there routine right now.. If you tried to coax.. well my husband says its like 'herding cats' near impossible until they want to go in the coop. But I found a cat near the coop yesterday and our dog chased it off.. so yeah they are still way too young to fend for themselves yet, about 3 -4 weeks old.
my son is quite good actually at herding chickens and we had a system down.. but it only took this new bunch about a week to figure out to go in at dusk. They do get it eventually.
