Is this ramp too steep for chicks?

[glennyg]

My chicks are 10 days old. The weather is warming up, most days between 20C and 26C. On nice days the family gets transferred to a fully enclosed outdoor cage with wire floor and sugar cane mulch, shade, feeder and waterers.

Eventually they will be able to go from the henhouse into their safe chicken run by way of this ramp (not in situ in this photo because the henhouse pophole is closed off so they can't get out at this age). It is about 45 deg angle and covered in artificial turf for grip.

Any idea how old they will need to be to climb this? Or is it too steep? Thank you for your advice.

 

[K0k0shka]

I don't think your photo made it into the post.

 

[glennyg]

I don't think your photo made it into the post.

Thanks, fixed.

 

[K0k0shka]

That is quite steep indeed... At 10 days old, they'd be physically capable of using the ramp, but whether they'd want to or not that's a separate question. Chicks are hesitant of ramps at first regardless of the angle, and if the angle is challenging, it's all the more discouraging for them. Can you use a longer board to make a ramp that's less steep? Or better yet, you could make some steps for them out of cinderblocks, logs, large rocks etc. to use instead of a ramp. That's what I have actually, I used several logs of different heights one in front of the other to create "steps" from the ground up to the pop door. That takes up less space than a ramp, and is easier for the chickens to use. Hopping up to a height is more natural to them than balancing on a ramp, and chicks can hop very young and quite high, so they'd be more likely to use stepped objects like that than a ramp.

It's dark outside now but I'll go out tomorrow and take a picture of my setup to show you.

 

[Lillith37]

Or better yet, you could make some steps for them out of cinderblocks, logs, large rocks etc. to use instead of a ramp. That's what I have actually, I used several logs of different heights one in front of the other to create "steps" from the ground up to the pop door. That takes up less space than a ramp, and is easier for the chickens to use. Hopping up to a height is more natural to them than balancing on a ramp, and chicks can hop very young and quite high, so they'd be more likely to use stepped objects like that than a ramp.

I second this. In my experience chicks are much more likely to use steps than a ramp.

I do actually have some little ramps in my coop though leading up to the nest boxes where the chicks sleep with mama. I found propping the ramps up sideways was better for them than sticking straight out.

 

[K0k0shka]

Here’s my ramp-less setup!