Getting Mom and chicks into coop

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Hi All, I have a mama hen and 12, 4 week old chicks that are in a separate brooding box within the run. The door to the box has been open for two weeks and the mama and chicks have been freely mingling with the flock. Some hens are still acting territorial when the group approaches the coop, but they’ve spent some time inside. At night, Mama hen leads babies back into the brooding box. I have another broody that I’d like to put in the box with eggs within the next week. Any thoughts on how to get Mama and babies out of the box and into the coop at night?

 

[Ridgerunner]

The way i would do it is to move Momma and the chicks into the main coop after they have all settled in for the night. Lock Momma in the coop first, then catch the chicks and put them in. Just let them loose on the coop floor, don't worry about trying to put the chicks under her or anything like that. Momma will be so mad that might not end well for you. The chicks will run to her.

Then lock the brooding box so she can't get back in the next night. See what she does. She may take them into the main coop, she may settle down with them near the brooding box. If you need to, move them into the main coop every night until she gets the message. It probably will not take that long. I would be down there fairly early the first morning or two, until I was comfortable there won't be issues. If your coop is bi enough for 12 more chickens I do not anticipate any problems.

Let Momma decide where she wants them to sleep. That will probably be on the coop floor to start with but she may take them to the roosts before too long.

 

[centrarchid]

I try to have a surplus of nesting sites, but do occasionally move a brood like you are wanting to do. One approach is to move the nest box incrementally over a few days in direction you want them to go. That can include mounting nest box on roost.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Thank you both for responding. I have roost space, but my bossy girls have all staked out there own roost and threaten any other hen who wants anywhere near there. They could nest on the floor, but I have ducks there who will probably harass them during the night, so I’d need to set up a box or pen. Mama bird is ahead of me; she tried to get the chicks up on the roosts tonight, but several chicks didn’t come and the older gals chased them all out. I’m thinking that I should entice the older hens to the pen, then let mama and chicks roost, then let the hens back over and supervise them getting to a roost without attacking any chicks. We just had a cold front come through, it’s very cool for Oklahoma in June, highs in the 70s and loves in the 50s, then it warms up by 10 degrees in a few days. Any thoughts on how warm it needs to be for them to roost? If mama and chicks need to stay on the ground for now, I could also fence off a different section for the broody hen with eggs, or set up a small night time dog cage on the coop floor...