How do you

get them to go outside.

My 12 year son and myself spent all day working on their run. We got everything done, buttoned up tight. I go into the coop and open the pop door for them, and wait for the stampede of chicks trying to get out the door. Nothing not one, was brave enough to venture into the unknown. So I catch one, let me tell you that was fun. I set it outside hoping the others would follow. Nothing, just one lone chick outside chirping to be let back in. Ok maybe two will do the trick. Did I tell you those buggers are fast, out she goes, now I have two sitting outside the pop door, chirping to please be let back in. Ok enough is enough your chickens your supposed to be outside, my son and I will not be outsmarted by a bunch of chickens...so we thought. Well we finally got all 17 of them outside. We decide to go around and see what they are doing in the great outdoors, and by the time we walked around the barn to the run, no chickens. Huh? I asked my son did you close the door? no I thought you did, was the response. So back to the coop we go. Sure enough there they are all back inside acting all innocent. Till I walked into the coop, I got the here he comes again response. By now my son and I have gotten a system down on catching them, but only this time as soon as one would get put out as soon and we would turn around it would jump back in. By the way chickens are fast. So here we are catching and re catching the same chickens. We finally get them all outside one more time, I close the pop door, aha, not so smart after all. We walk back around the barn to take in the site of chickens, doing chicken things outside. But no, on the Ridge farm nothing is as it should be. There are all 17 chickens huddled under the one piece of wood fence I left leaning against the barn for them. After admitting defeat, I went and opened the pop door again. They all flooded back into the coop. I went out after dinner and closed the door for the night, not one of the minded either.

 

They are 6 weeks old, and have been living in their coop for the last 3 days.