Hens won't use the floor door to exit the coop.

[klinderman]

Hi guys,

So I have a total of 5 hens, 2 of them refuse to exit the coop through the door that's placed on the floor of the coop. So every morning, I have to assist them to the run, or else they get trapped up in the coop all day! They have no problem going up into the coop at night, or if they want to lay eggs, its just that once they are up there, there's no getting out for them. Has anyone else experienced this? I've considered making a door that exits through the side of the coop, but thought it would make the coop awfully cold and windy during the winter months, not to mention snow would also blow inside. If anyone has any tips on how I can make this easier for them, that would be great, otherwise I'll just keep doing what I'm doing. Thanks everyone!

 

[vajjslayer09]

hmm thats weird mine were uneasy at first but after i rushed them thru it they were fine...i just pressured them til they had to go thru and it worked for me

 

[Bryant Redhawk]

It might be worth doing a little investigating to figure out what looks different to them between going inside as to heading outside.

Other things to look at; door size, ramp angle, width, cleat count, lighting, etc. It sounds like those two hens are balking at something, you just have to figure out what it is.

Or it could be like has been suggested, you just need to give them a push for a while so they get used to going out through the door.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Hi guys,

So I have a total of 5 hens, 2 of them refuse to exit the coop through the door that's placed on the floor of the coop. !

As Bryant Redhawk mentioned it may be the pitch of the ramp.

A good rule of thumb in a perfect world:
Make your ramp twice as long as the drop which would give you a 6/12 pitch and an angle of 22.5º.
"A 4x4 block attached to the end of your ramp to make a step up will do a lot to reduce the slope also."

 

[aart]

Headroom....easier going up than down.
Can you post a pic?

 

[klinderman]

Thanks all! I'm going to try to just push them down instead of carrying them down. I'm also going to redo the ramp to try and make it easier for them. I will post some pics before I start so if anyone has further insight they can inform me what they think would be best! I personally think, those two hens believe if they jump down that hole, they are jumping to their deaths!

 

[Bryant Redhawk]

Quote: You may be exactly right on the money. Think of it this way, would you jump down a hole that didn't seem to have a bottom?

On my grandparents farm, way back when when dirt was just being formed. I was tasked to lengthen the trap door entrance/exit of their above ground coop. I was told that some of the hens couldn't see the light and wouldn't leave. The solution was to make the "door" longer so they could see the ground beyond the ramp. It was not hard to make the fix and the balking hens never had any stuck inside problems ever again.

 

[aart]

Quote:

You may be exactly right on the money. Think of it this way, would you jump down a hole that didn't seem to have a bottom?

On my grandparents farm way back when when dirt was just being formed, I was tasked to lengthen the trap door entrance/exit of their above ground coop. I was told that some of the hens couldn't see the light and wouldn't leave, the solution was to make the "door" longer so they could see the ground beyond the ramp. It was not hard to make the fix and the balking hens never had any stuck inside problems ever again.

Yep, kinda what I meant by Headroom.
Could also be insufficient cleating, hard to walk down a ramp than up it.

I personally feel trap doors waste coop floor space.

 

[Bryant Redhawk]

Yep, kinda what I meant by Headroom.
Could also be insufficient cleating, hard to walk down a ramp than up it.

I personally feel trap doors waste coop floor space.

Yes indeed on the wasted floor space. My grandfather and I built a bigger, better coop that same summer that was on the ground. It was lots better for the chickens too, they had a regular door that didn't need a ramp, lots of nesting boxes and so much more room inside that they didn't get into any squabbles like they had in the smaller up on stilts coop. One of the best days of my life on that farm was when I got to tear down that first coop.

 

[Hholly]

Some of that tape for stair treads on the ramp might help too.