Hens don't make it in at night.

[lovinlife]

My chickens go into the coop to roost at dusk. Sometimes, one or two of them need reminding of where to go. I don't think my rooster has much to do with that. However, if one of the guineas is in the coop (where it shouldn't be) he won't get on the roost until I get the guinea out. He does protect the hens to some extent. A rooster isn't necessary, though.

I'd check them every night at dusk to make sure they're all back in the coop on the roost. I do a head count every single time I close the door. If I don't, guaranteed that will be the night one of them didn't make it in. If one of them isn't in there, go find her and put her on the roost where she belongs.

I agree that the coop should be closed at night.

 

[gwill23]

The light seems to be working. I found the timmer wasn't coming on in the evenings. That is probably why they didn't find their way in. They seem to be getting in at night now.

 

[angidee]

Feeding treats at night in the coop is another great way to get them back in.
My girls (no roos in this flock) come running when I come out of the house and head for the coop to throw in treats.
Treats are anything from scraps from dinner, oatmeal left over from breakfast or as simple as a couple handfuls of scratch or cracked corn.

 

[wooldl]

Hello,

First time poster here and first time chick farmer! Great site!

This is the issue I'm having. Our chicks (21) are 8 weeks old and have been outside in the coop/enclosed run for two weeks. At night maybe 4 - 6 of them will go in the coop but the others huddle up under the coop and settle in. We have been going out at night and placing them in the coop manually. I initially had a red heat lamp in the coop, but now that it's staying around 70 degrees I have it unplugged.

Would a small white light help lure them in at night?

Will they eventually learn to go inside?

Should I lure them in with food/treats?

The run is a complete enclosure with chicken wire for a roof, so I'm not really concerned with predators, but I would like them to learn that they are to roost indoors at night.

Can this be taught?

Thanks a lot,
Dale

 

[wooldl]

I've answered my own question..........YES, they can be taught. Since replacing the red heat lamp with a smaller white light, the chickens (well, most anyway) have been going inside the coop just before dark. Two nights ago there were only 5 that did not go inside, and last night there was only one lone stragler that didn't go in the coop voluntarily.

D

 

[Jen71]

This is very good information, thank you.
We are building our coop and hadn't planned on installing a light. I will adjust our plans to include a light of some kind.
Thx!

 

[cobrien]

Quote:
Dale, welcome to BYC!

One comment, I recommend browsing the predators and pests section of BYC, and/or the coops section; chicken wire is not really predator proof. It is most likely fine for a run during the day, but at night most people recommend locking inside an enclosed coop. 1/2" hardware cloth is generally recommended for a more predator-proof run if you need it.

 

[gwill23]

They can be taught for sure. I built a new coop and the outer run has a door that is about 3 feet off the ground on the inside but 4 feet on the outside. I didn't want preditors to go in. I have to put a 4x4 board up outside so they can see the opening but they are all going in now. I had to catch the ones that didn't go in at night and slowly walk them to the door and make the walk up the board. They seemed to get the idea after a bit.