How Get Flock In Coop At Night?

[MelindaK]

Chicks are getting bigger and Hubby is building coop. He is going to cut out a drop door from bottom of the coop floor (it is on stilts off the ground). I realized that I don't know how you get your chickens in coop at night.

How do you get your flock in the coop at night?

Do you keep food and water in the coop at night? I was planning on keeping food and water under the coop.

When do you take them in at night? When do you let them out in the morning?

Knowing this now, may help in the design of our chicken door. Thanks!!!

 

[cluckcluck42]

I let my chickens out at 9am most mornings and by dark they have been in the coop for awhile. They only get fed in the coop and they just gravitate back there when they are tired. If we need them in, we just get out the food scoop and shake it around and they come running in. They are easily bribable

Grats on getting into chickens, you will love it. Bribe bribe bribe!

 

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

If they're young/new/inexperienced, you can place them on the roosts at night.

 

[Tala]

Lock them in the coop for about a week (if it's big enough, or do it while they are still small) and they should put themselves to their home bed at night.

IF they start trying to roost outside the coop you can sometimes move them several nights and they will figure it out.

If they start roosting in trees above your head you can clip their wing feathers to keep them lower.

 

[no1male]

ours coops is not big enough for food/water so that is left in the atached run. Our birds free range everyday and have done since weve had them. As stated bu the time it gets dark they are already in there coop, so we just lock the door and let them out in the morning at about 07:00.

For the first few days we had to encourage them to use there pirch which they are now getting the hang of.

Enjoy your chickens

 

[MelindaK]

Whew!!! That doesn't sound too bad!!!!!

I'm thinking Hubby is going to need to rethink his chicken door coming out from floor design (but that is for another forum catagory

)

Thank you so much for your replies!!!

 

[Badlatitude]

You can have more then 1 door for them. I know a few friends who have a door for their run and a door for them to go range and eat bugs in the yard. Either way the feathered little piggys know where their bread is buttered come feeding time.

 

[ScoobyRoo]

MelindaK

My coop is also on stilts and I have a hanging feeder underneath it. I have a small window that is on the side. We popped out the chicken wire and fashioned a board up to the window so the chickens can come and go. My advantage is the coop is inside of a very large pen that can also be enclosed. Like the other poster mentioned, if it is large enough to accomodate all the chicks I would leave them in for several days (with food and water of course). This way they will know where 'home' is. I don't have a schedule with my chickens on when I let them out. I know they have plenty of fresh water and food so I'll let them out when I get there.

The sooner the better the chickens would prefer. They should automatically come back to home to roost. Sometimes, if we are leaving for the evening and I need to get them penned up earlier, I throw the good stuff in the pen and call them. What I mean by the good stuff is scratch. I just throw a little at a time till they all go in then I can shut the gate. I will get a stubborn one every now and then. If I don't have anymore time trying to coax it in the pen, then I pray that it is stilll alive when we get back. Good luck with your babies.

 

[no1male]

If we get a stubborn one we just pick her up, they soon get the message

 

[Buff Hooligans]

Quote:
I agree with Tala. This is the surest way for them to associate the coop as home-sweet-home.