Hens can't find the open gate

[hoosierhens101]

We have a rooster and 11 hens. We have for the past 2 days been opening the big gate to their pen and letting them free range a few hours in the evening. The rooster and most of the hens wander back into the own at around 8:30pm. A few stranglers seem to get panicky and start pacing on the wrong side of the face and can't seem to find the gate. Will they eventually learn or will we have to herd them in every night?

 

[SueT]

Yes, they will learn. They will orient themselves so they can find it even if they are panicked....

 

[sourland]

There's a slow one in every crowd.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

There's always a few aren't there. Most will figure it out. Hopefully all.

 

[kwhites634]

We have a rooster and 11 hens. We have for the past 2 days been opening the big gate to their pen and letting them free range a few hours in the evening. The rooster and most of the hens wander back into the own at around 8:30pm. A few stranglers seem to get panicky and start pacing on the wrong side of the face and can't seem to find the gate. Will they eventually learn or will we have to herd them in every night?

If chickens had hands, they couldn't find their butts with both of them!

 

[SueT]

I do have one ditzy young hen, who sometimes gets 'stuck' on the wrong side of the fence, following the others on the other side, but then realizes she's unable to go with them. She'll put up a big fuss, and the rooster will stop what he's doing, go back thru the gate to get her and guide her to the opening.

 

[hoosierhens101]

I do have one ditzy young hen, who sometimes gets 'stuck' on the wrong side of the fence, following the others on the other side, but then realizes she's unable to go with them. She'll put up a big fuss, and the rooster will stop what he's doing, go back thru the gate to get her and guide her to the opening.

Nice. Our rooster isn't so gallant.

 

[DobieLover]

There's a slow one in every crowd.

Sometimes more than one. And that certainly doesn't help matters.

 

[hoosierhens101]

Sometimes more than one. And that certainly doesn't help matters.

Yup. The first night it was one hen ,the second night it was 3!

 

[Acre4Me]

Yes, they will find their way! Ours took quite awhile, but now are much easier to get in. However, we don’t let them out of the run everyday, so they didn’t have a constant routine of leaving and entering the fenced area.