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- #171
- Apr 10, 2022
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That's what I thought and yes it has a solid roof and a hardware cloth base with dead sod over it.In that case, there's not much point in putting them in, since they are free to come out again. Either put them in and shut it every night until they learn, or just accept that they will sleep wherever they want.
I thought you were trying to get them to sleep inside for safety (secure coop, insecure run.) But I was obviously wrong there.
Does the secure run have a solid roof? If so, it's probably fine to let them sleep there all year if they want to. If it doesn't have a solid roof, I can see that letting them sleep out in the rain could be a problem.
I'm in FloridaI agree that chickens do not need to eat during the night.
But is the rest of your statement meant to apply specifically to OP, or to all chicken keepers? (I don't remember where OP lives.)
If you mean it to apply to all chicken keepers, I say it is wrong for many of them.
I live in the USA, which has many areas where chickens spend all day inside the coop during the winter. In those conditions, the coop needs to be large enough for them to spend their time while they are awake, and it also needs to have food and water inside.
There are many good ways to house chickens, and no method is "best" in all climates, so what you suggest may be good in your climate and some others. But I've always lived in places where a chicken coop DOES need to be big enough for food, water, and daytime activities.