I've got a few questions...

[Nikerdoodle74]

I'll try and keep this short! I have 3 adult hens who have abandoned their coup after the rooster I had decided he didnt like them. He chose one hen and drove the rest off. He was sent onto the big coup in the sky. None of the exiled hens will return to the coup. His girlfriend was snatched this by a predator yesterday, leaving my coup empty. I've tried to force them to live there, but 2 of the 3 can fly and they leave when they want...one has figured out how to get back in one has not. My hens aren't pets, in the sense that I can catch them. They know I'm the food source, but keep a 3 ft. distance. Since they are so indepent they free range on our 10 acres. I have 20 chicks to add to my flock, 12 that are 5 weeks and 8 that are 1 week. I'm pretty sure one of the older chicks is a rooster. Do I need this little rooster to help protect then as they will be free ranging too? Any way to keep this little rooster from turning into a jerk? How do I get everyone together and not have the newbies decide to move into my barn like my old girls? And lastly how do I keep the older hens laying in one place? As my hay pile is leaving, one hen keeps convincing another that the box I've put out isn't safe. My third hen keeps laying in the box regardless of what's around it. No one is laying in the coup, even though the food is in it. Water is is in the fencing around the coup.
Thanks for reading my book!

 

[chickenlittle21]

What breed of chicken is the chick? If you hold him alot he will become friendly with humans and most likely friendly with the hens too. And say even after all that holding he is only friendly to humans and not the hens, because he is friendly to you, you could pick him up and take him away.

The hens that won't go into the coop should be fine as long as they find a shelter every night. If you are really worried about the hens you can build a simple new coop out of pallets and build nesting boxes and put there food in there.

 

[Nikerdoodle74]

If i remember right, the suspected rooster is an Asain Black. I got him at tractor supply on a whim. He looks a lot like a barred rock.

 

[50-45-1]

Please post a picture of your coop. There may be a design reason your chickens dont prefer it.
Do you have fake eggs or golf balls in your existing nest box to entice your hens to lay there? It will tell your hens thaT this place was safe for some other hen and help the others to trust it.
I NEVER pick up ,carry around or make pets of my rooster. I believe it takes away the natural fear and respect that is necessary to keep that rooster behaving well around humans.
Chickens roosting outside at night are at great risk of predation, namely owls and raccoons.
Waiting for your coop pictures...

 

[Nikerdoodle74]

Hope these load!

 

[Nikerdoodle74]

Barn picture is where they have been roosting since Jeffrey tried to kill Chicken Nugget and Criss Cross Apple Sauce.
Last picture is where growing chicks are. They were sleeping.

 

[50-45-1]

I am wonering if you have any windows in you coop.
If not that might be part of it as it would be pretty dark.
Also when its closed up at night, is there any cross breese or air circulation?
I would think you could catch your hens if they are sleeping on the pallets in the barn by going out after dark with a dim flashlight and grabbing them.
Put them in your coop and keep them in there for a couple days. Put fake eggs or golf balls in your nest boxes. Maybe clean them first ( it looks like they may have been pooping in there) and put some straw or hay.
If your chickens fly up in trees, when you catch them trim the flight feaThers off one wing (there is some great instructions on just how to trim here) that will greatly impead their ability to fly very far up on anything,
Good luck!

 

[Nikerdoodle74]

No window. It's on our to do list for this spring. We have gaps in the roof to wall edges for ventilation. We were thinking of adding something like floor vents to the front and back for better ventilation that we could control...so maybe we should make that a definite to do. Hay or straw is better than pine shavings? I will clean the coup up, change bedding, and put put our decoy eggs. Hens are actually roosting on the rafter of the barn..its a terrible picture, making grabbing them while they sleep impossible. I'll try and find a way to grab them and force them to spend the night in there...they used to sleep in there, so maybe it will come back to them after a few forced times.
Thank you for your insight!

 

[aart]

Not sure 20+ birds will fit into that coop.
What are the dimensions?
Ditto the windows.
I don't see any gaps along the back wall where it meets the roof?
Gap on both back(low) and front(high) would be good.

Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[50-45-1]

Oh, now i see that they are way up on a rafter in the pole barn.
Can you close all the doors after they are in there at night, push them to the floor somehow and catch them? They are making quite the mess.
I filled all rafter spaces in my coop so they couldent roost above my head when im in there.
You could fill that gap with wood or mesh wire. Or trim feathers so they will have trouble gaining that height.
You have some nice set up potential, but i also think the small coop is to small for 20.