How much time do your chickens spend in the coop?

[Bear4boo]

I’m wondering how much time your chickens spend in the coop during the day?
It was my understanding that coops are primarily for night/sleep, egg laying and bad weather/protection but I had someone tell me that they keep food and treats in the coop as well as the run as her chickens use both throughout the day. I’d love to know how often your chickens are in their coop and what you keep for them inside.

 

[My Bagurks]

My chickens lay and sleep in the coop. That’s it. I have a covered area outside the coop with the food and the water is about 20 feet away from the coop. But they do hide in the coop during storms. And even then I have a few that apparently love the rain and perch in the uncovered part of the run.

 

[igorsMistress]

My flock is in and out of their coop throughout the day. I keep only water in the coop, no treats or food.

 

[Aunt Angus]

Mine are penned much of the day until I can figure out a fencing situation. I caught a fox stalking them the other day...

But I keep food in the coop as well as in the run for those chickens who are lower in the pecking order.

 

[Mrs. K]

I have two covered shelters in my run, with roosts, and multiple feed dishes set up so that while eating at one dish, cannot see birds eating at another dish. I try and only put out enough feed for the day. Food and water are in the run.

I seldom see birds inside the coop unless they are laying. Occasionally in a truly bad storm, such as a winter blizzard, they will stay in the coop, but not often.

Mrs K

 

[Hermits Garden]

My chickens pile out of their coop first thing in the morning, then at 6 ish I take them wet mash, which they eat while I scoop the poo and do a 360 around the run to check things out. Then I open the other pop door and the human door, so they're sort of in and out all day. In the heat of the day, they take naps in the coop, and then come out again when the shade is over them again.

They're only two months old, so I don't know what they'll do later.

 

[3KillerBs]

In my situation, define "coop".

An Open Air coop blurs the lines between coop and run and Neuchickenstein was deliberately designed to be cool, airy, shady, and comfortable even when the afternoon sun is beating down on the run.

They go in and out with different groups in and out at different times.

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

another ‘define coop’ situation. I leave the pop door open to a large covered run. Some birds rarely like to sleep in the run on warmer evenings, but mostly they sleep in the coop and hang out in the run during the day until they see me coming. I work before sunrise so when I get home in the evening they free range until dusk then go to run/coop on their own.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Mine spend very little time in the coop in the day, mostly just inside to lay, though I do keep my dry feeder in there (plus grit and oyster shell) so they'll pop in to eat and then back out again.

That said, I've had to lock them in the coop before due to flooding, and if there's snow they don't want to come out at all. So during times like that, that's when having a decent sized coop pays off.

 

[knobhillfarm]

It’s rare to see mine in the coop during daytime. They usually stay in the run unless the weather is exceptionally bad or they are spooked about something. Mine are not yet old enough to lay so that might chage things a bit.