Hens will not yet go INTO the Coop...

[TexasWineGuy]

Howdy All,

We have a couple young hens, about 5 months olds as best as I can calculate. They have been in their new home (got them from my brother) for a full week.

The darn things have not yet gone up INTO the actual roosting coop yet. They do occasionally go all the way up the ramp and peek in, but not inside. No biggie, or should I do something to coax them?

My brother suggested that if they don't go in there very soon organically, I should pick them up and place them in the coop at night and lock them in for the night. Apparently he did that with a few stubborn hens with 100% success.

Thoughts?

Our setup below:

TWG

 

[PirateGirl]

How many chickens do you have total?

Try putting a light in the coop at dusk, a small flashlight will work. Once it is lighter in the coop than it is outside, it becomes more enticing. You can shut the light off once the chickens go in. Eventually you won't need the light.

Also removing the roost bar from the run might help. Their instinct is to find a high place to roost for the night, without that as an option they may be more inclined to venture up the ramp and into the coop.

 

[TexasWineGuy]

Pirate, we just have the 2 hens right now.

TWG

 

[DobieLover]

Howdy All,

We have a couple young hens, about 5 months olds as best as I can calculate. They have been in their new home (got them from my brother) for a full week.

The darn things have not yet gone up INTO the actual roosting coop yet. They do occasionally go all the way up the ramp and peek in, but not inside. No biggie, or should I do something to coax them?

My brother suggested that if they don't go in there very soon organically, I should pick them up and place them in the coop at night and lock them in for the night. Apparently he did that with a few stubborn hens with 100% success.

Thoughts?

Our setup below:

TWG
View attachment 1835932

You are in Texas.
That coop looks sorely lacking in ventilation. My money is on it's too hot in there for them.

 

[HopeSprings]

I put my 5 week-old chicks into their coop from the brooder in my sun room. I didn't let them into the run until they had spent 2 nights in the coop.

 

[TexasWineGuy]

OK, I plan to increase the ventilation area and then maybe do a lockdown for a couple nights.

TWG

 

[rosemarythyme]

IMO the coop portion is too small for a lockdown, even with just 2 birds. I would still definitely look into increasing ventilation and light in there, so it's more comfortable, appealing and healthy for them (one very obvious spot to open up is the inside wall that's directly under the roof), then manually put them inside, on the roost, each night until they figure it out for themselves.

 

[TexasWineGuy]

IMO the coop portion is too small for a lockdown, even with just 2 birds. I would still definitely look into increasing ventilation and light in there, so it's more comfortable, appealing and healthy for them (one very obvious spot to open up is the inside wall that's directly under the roof), then manually put them inside, on the roost, each night until they figure it out for themselves.

rose,

I have a small LED flashlight in the coop tonight. As of 45 minutes past dark they are still outside of the coop. I will leave the flashlight in the coop all night and just let the batteries burn out through the night. Worth a few AAA batteries if this works.

Tomorrow I will also add a decent sized vent on the one side of the coop to increase circulation.

The good news is that we let them out of the enclosure tonight at 8 PM to roam the yard. They had a blast scratching around the Coop structure, then went back in all by themselves at 8:45 - just as planned. A good night.

Just need to get them to trust the Coop itself.

TWG

 

[rosemarythyme]

I have a small LED flashlight in the coop tonight. As of 45 minutes past dark they are still outside of the coop. I will leave the flashlight in the coop all night and just let the batteries burn out through the night. Worth a few AAA batteries if this works.

A battery operated puck light can also work. I'm just a big fan of natural light since obviously it's: 1) free and 2) the gradual dawning and dimming is a lot less stressful on the birds, which may protest when lights are suddenly switched off.

 

[TexasWineGuy]

No luck getting them in the upper Coop with the small flashlight. I will try again tonight after I add another circulation vent this morning.

TWG