Got my Peeps Today!

[raspeary]

Congrats on such cute chicks!! Enjo them while they are small.

 

[Winsor Woods]

Well today was "graduation day," at our house. The girls (and two roos) moved out to the coop this afternoon. I moved them out one at a time and did it in reverse pecking order as best as I could. I showed them where their new food and water spots were and then placed them on the upper roost bar. They'll really have lots of room to grow into their new diggs. I tried to put a secondary roost bar about half the height of the upper roost bar but I'm not sure they can make it up to the top yet. None of them jumped down from the upper roost bar so after about 30 minutes, I put them all on the sand floor. They were scratching and pecking and preening etc. They seem to be adjusting fairly well.

My biggest question is this:

Do I need to put each one of them up on the roost bar at night and get them down in the morning? I've read of others doing this but I wasn't sure if this was a good idea as they seem reluctant to flap down from that height (about 6' 6" high). If they didn't jump down, they could get to their food and water at night time if they wanted it. What do you guys think?

Dan

 

[BantyRooster]

Initially when I moved my birds to the big coop I had roost at two, four, and six feet. The birds would jump up on the roost to look around but slept on the floor for the first few nights. I added a lower roost about eighteen inches and they started sleeping on that for about a week. After that it seemed they all made the move and were on the high roost at about ten days. I removed the lowest roost at this point, but left the lower two and four foot perch and added two more at six feet. They still jostle around for what the consider the best spots but there is enough room for all of them at six feet. All use the lower boards to get up onto the high roost and some use them to come down. Other just fly off to the floor.

As a side note, all the roost are 2x4's with the wide side parallel to the floor.

I wouldn't worry about all that putting them up and taking them down. They'll do that themselves when they are ready.

Do you plan to or do you have a night light that you'll leave on all night?

 

[JoAnn_WI_4-H_Mom]

That roost height seems kind of high for young birds, leave them on the floor and they will choose when to go up.

 

[Winsor Woods]

I've got my brooder light out there and I'll run that during the nights. My roosts are also 2x4's on their sides. I remember reading that from some other post here at BYC. It gives them plenty of room to nestle down on.

I guess I'll just let them figure it out for themselves. I know they can do 2 foot jumps so maybe tomorrow I'll put another roost bar in at 2' for them, then they can go 2-4-6 and be up there.

Thanks again.

Dan