My wife and I are new chicken and guinea people. Brand new coop and newly built pen just this weekend. We have 2 Rhode Island Red hens and 2 Orppingtons. All 4 are probably 8-10 weeks old. We have a Guinea keet and 2 Rock Bard chicks whick we'll say are 3 to 4 weeks old. At night the 4 older ones go to the coop, no problem. The Guinea and the 2 Rock Bards, (which were raised together) are not cooperating. I go out at night and they are in the corner of the pen. Will time take care of this or is there something I can do to persuade them to go into the coop at night? Again, we are neophytes to the chicken/guinea game. Thanks
i had some young silkes that would not go in the coop. They huddled in the corner i would pick them up and place them in the coop it took about a week of this and they started going in on there own. My Guineas stay out till its dark and work there way in much later then the chickens.. My young guineas that were raised with the chicks follow them in. but it will take a few days of placing them in the coop then they'll catch on.
yes we had the same.. tiptoeing into the darkened garden with a torch, to find them still clucking about outside. I tried putting a bit of corn right ino the coop, but i dont like to leave food out at night becasue of vermin. Tried a (gentle) nudge with a fluffy broom, kind of worked, but the best thing is just to pick them up, and load them in, one by one. My daughter did the lifting, I managed the door.. will probably get better at this. Eventually, I would like to start putting them in before it gets too dark, as we have a lot of foxes about.
I had the same problem with some of my chickens. I did what you're doing, just kept putting them into the coop myself. They eventually got the idea, but it took a while, so be ready to keep working at it! http://muckycluckers.blogspot.com/
same place here- a couple of mine will go up into the coop on their own to lay their eggs- but not to go to bed- i don't want ot wait until dark to get htem in- but wait until the sun is just setting- then go and put them in one by one- i am using a "go to bed" when i do it- hopefully it will end up being a cue. We have after 4 days gotten to the point now that they at least come out in the morning on their own!
Hm.... My chooks did it on their first night in the coop, maybe i just had Brainy little cluckers. And i think you mean Barred Rocks not rock bards
Mine only took 2 days, if you have electricity in the coop, turn a light on right at dusk and they will go in by them selves. thats what we did with great sucess. Now I dont have to turn the light on at they just go in every night around 8:30
