How to coerce chickens in their coop

[Altairsky]

I started to close the coop during the afternoon. No free food out of the coop. Only water and a handful of regular food when I go outside.
In the evening, they would kill to get into the coop first.

 

[JessicaPoff]

How long have you had these birds?

The light just needs to be small, I've used a battery powered puck light, it will draw them in to the coop as it gets darker outside.

Since a day or two old

 

[aart]

Since a day or two old

Have they ever gone into the coop voluntarily?
Did they spend some 24/7 time in the coop to 'home' them to it?
How big is this "lot" you mention?

 

[Yardmom]

Something is making these chicks not want to go into that coop. Continuously putting them in at night should work as homing. What are the dimensions of the coop? How many feet of roost. How high are the roosts? Are the windows open for ventilation? How dark is it when you give up on them going in on their own? Chicks tend to go in later than seasoned hens. What are they doing (piling or roosting on something else) before you put them in?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Are you waiting until it is dark. Maybe you are but it doesn't read that way. What I often see is the older ones go in first. When they are on the roost the younger ones go in the coop to where they spend the night, usually not the roosts.

I may be reading this wrong but dark is the signal that it is bedtime.

 

[crjarrett02]

In the lot they are in apart from the coop. We go right before night and make sure they are put up. The older girls are, and at times some of the other new girls will follow but there is a good amount that will not. They run around in the lot and will not go through the door of the coop.

we used mealworms for enticement to get our chicks trained. then we shut the coop yard door behind as we stepped in and while using a branch...shooed them up the plank to close the auto coop door manually. It might help.

 

[aart]

@JessicaPoff did you get this worked out?

 

[countryladyNH]

We've always bought dried mealworms online (11 POUND BAGS, DISCOUNTED!) Lasts for months and months. We fill a large plastic jar with them and keep it on the 'chicken shelf' in shed. When it's time to go in, we go get it, shake it, while yelling "treats! go home!" and they come running and follow us to the run/coop.

 

[Loving my girls]

Do you have a picture of the inside of your coop ?

 

[Grannys Backyard Chicks]

So very helpful... I'm trying the meal worms tonight!!
One usually goes inside. The other 5 sit on the "porch" ledge and wait to be put inside. It's not a big deal to put them in but would like to see them going in by themselves.
Thanks for sharing!!