ideal perch / roost width...???

[saltdean norm]

hi all quick question here...

what would you suggest for perch / roost bar width. The old coop i'm pimping has square edge 1". i've some old round edged 2"X3" laying about...would it be better to replace with that?

Cheers all

Norm

UK

 

[HEChicken]

You want it to be wide enough that they sit on it instead of having to hold on (not very restful to have to hold on all night to avoid falling off). Also, if they can sit on it with their feet flat, they'll be able to keep their toes warm with their bodies at night. I recently made a roost using a 2x4, using the 4" side for them to sit on.

 

[Katy]

For mine I use 2x8's with a few 2 x 6's.

 

[shelleyd2008]

Quote:
Almost exactly what I was gonna say, you want them to be able to sit on their feet. So it should be at least 3 inches wide, I used 1x4 for mine.

 

[LynneP]

We gave our hens three 4" roosts at the same level then discovered that they use them for gossip and grooming but prefer to sleep on a shelf above the nest boxes at a heaight of about 2 feet- who knew?

At least I get zall their overnight offering when I scrape in the mornings...

 

[saltdean norm]

thanks...i'm sure i must have some 2X4" knocking about as well. will get it swapped over as part of the revamp. when complete i'll post the photo's i've been taking.
norm

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Even here, where it doesn't often get too cold, I use the 2x4's turned so they can sit on the 4" part. If it gets too cold they still can have warm feet and they do very good roosting on it.
But I also have some pens with resting poles made from broom stick handles or 1x1s. They will get on those some during the day but don't like to sleep on them at night and those are for the bantams.
You can see that the bantams still like the 2x4's.....

and my standard breeds do well with them, too.....

 

[Katy]

I don't know what kind of birds you have, but the 2X4's just didn't seem big enough for my larger breeds like the orps and the wyandottes. They are much happier since I used wider boards.

 

[chickbotfamily]

Here is my roost. I have a 2x4 and the girls like it.

 

[saltdean norm]

thanks all. will get them changed asap.
norm