I have a stupid question...because I'm a newbie :)

[PamB]

It is raining for the first time since we put our chickens in their coop. They are Silkies and are about 12 weeks old. If it is still raining in the morning, do I still open the coop door and give them the choice of coming out in the rain?? It has been pretty chilly in the mornings so I'm not sure if it is smart to let them get wet. However, I leave for work so if I don't open the coop, they would have to stay in there all day even if the rain stopped. Are they usually smart enough to stay in the coop if it is raining hard??

 

[SunnyDawn]

No, but this is because they don't like to be "cooped" up all day. Give them shelter from the rain in the run area and they will go under it if it starts raining hard.

 

[acid_chipmunk]

My Silkies are the dumbest of all of my birds, but I love them dearly. It rained here all day and hubby didn't let them out because they would just stand out in the rain all day and get soaked. Their food and water is in their coop, so they weren't starved or anything. I am sure they are not happy with us, but if they weren't so dumb, they could be out in the rain.

 

[JLS]

My silkies (15 weeks) sometimes go out into the rain if it's not pouring. If you open the door they will be able to decide if it's something they want to experience. If they do not like it they'll make a b-line into the coop for sure. Some chickens appear to enjoy a light rain from time to time some hate it.....I say let them make the choice, it works for my flock.

Oh yes....there are no stupid questions as far as I am concerned. How else are you supposed to learn safely?

 

[PamB]

My coop is raised up off the ground a few feet and they spend a lot of time under there, so I assume they would go under there then and that would be good enough.

 

[NottinghamChicks]

I do not let my chickens free range when I am not home. My coop does have a good size covered run attached that is predator proof however so I always leave their coop door open throughout the day. They don't have any dilemmas about where to go if it is raining out. I do however open up the door to the run every afternoon and weekends when someone is home to let them free range until dusk and they like to be out in light rain but run back to the coop/run if the rain picks up. Silkies are not as weather proof as most breeds however and perhaps you should dictate their activity for them. They are such beautiful birds!!

 

[scarter]

We open the coop every morning until they won't come out anymore at the coldest part of the winter. Ours have no problem being cooped up for months at a time at the coldest days of the year. They can stay in there all day if there is enough square footage per bird. For rain some of ours will stand out in the rain and some will hover under the eaves of our pole barn roof or under bushes.

 

[PamB]

Our coop is in our covered run. It is only covered with wire though, so no rain protection there I have been letting them out each morning around 6:30 a.m. and they go into the coop themselves around 7. By the way, I think it is the cutest thing is watching them all line up on the ramp before they go in for the night. This will be their first experience with rain though. This is my set up, as you can see, there is some protection from the rain under the coop. They actually like it a lot under there. They all cuddle up together several times a day under the coop and nap.

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

How much square footage per bird are you supposed to have in a coop? (mine only sleep in theirs, but just saying if they got locked up all day or something).

 

[PamB]

I've read 4 square feet per bird. My DH was just saying last night though that our coop is too big because they only go in their to sleep and they sleep in a big pile in one little corner of the coop.