Hens don't make it in at night.

[gwill23]

My hens are having a bit of trouble. Not every night but two nights ago one hen was missing and I found her on the other side of the greenhouse roosted on a 4x4 sitting on the ground.

Tonight I got home and 7 of them had roosted on the bench my daughters use to stand on to get eggs.

Anyway will a rooster help get them all in at night?

 

[Olive Hill]

Are there roosts available in the coop?

How long did you leave them penned up before letting them free-range?

 

[gwill23]

Yes there are two sections so they have plenty of room.

I have had them 2 wks now. I kept them in the pen for 3 days. They seem to be making it back to lay although I am only getting 9 eggs / day from 12 hens. This has only happened twice but it is worring me a little since I am often gone until later at night.

 

[Olive Hill]

For some 3 days is enough to establish "home", but for others it's just not. I would keep them penned there for at least a week full-time. Until they're well-rooted in that area.

That said, if you're not there to lock the door after they go in at dusk they're no safer in the coop than they are outside it -- maybe even less so -- so if predators are your main concern it probably makes little difference one way or the other.

 

[geepy]

My roo calls his girls in at night. Maybe you should get a roo. They are all in by 7 at night. My guy and gals all free range all day, but thanks to a bobcat I have to lock them up at night. But anyway George usually gets all the girls in so locking up the roost is easy.

 

[Olive Hill]

Meant to also add, an alternative to keeping them penned in/near the coop is to go out at dusk every night for an extended period and manually ensure every hen is where she belongs. For those that didn't go in that means catching them and placing them in the coop. They'll get it that way, too. The penning is just a lot less work for most people.

 

[Toast n Jelly]

I would suggest building them an enclosed pen to protect them day and night.
You can build it large enough to keep them happy. Otherwise you're just asking for predators to come for dinner.

 

[teach1rusl]

If you have electricity available, you might put a small light out there for a while (inside the housing). Mine learned to go inside toward the light as it got darker outside. Now I don't have to have it on, but they'll still go in as dusk approaches. A rooster can do the trick as well, although that would take some time for him to learn to do it, and for the hens to learn to take his direction. And of course adding a rooster can add other issues if he turns out to be a not-so-nice rooster...

 

[gwill23]

Thanks for all your comments. I realized that my light is going off a little earlier than before. Maybe it isn't staying on long enough for them to find there way back in. I'll try that first.

As for the Roo, I am under the impression that he will add a level of security while the girls are out in the fact that he will watch out for them. I was looking at that as a good thing too so because the girls are now getting comfortable and they are not staying close to each other and they are wondering off alone.

Am I thinking right about this?

 

[Olive Hill]

He may, he may not. Even if he does it will take some time for the flock to come to a place where everything runs smoothly with him in charge. I would never suggest someone get a rooster just to get their hens in a coop at night, or for "added protection". Hens can and will learn to come home at night on their own and in the absence of a rooster, given ample time, a hen will often take on the position of flock roo and do the job just fine. If you don't have a want or need for fertilized eggs or a rooster in his own right there's no good reason to add one.