Lower rung chickens want to sleep in run

[higginskzoo]

I have 11 chickens (used to have 12, story follows) with a 4x8 multi-rung coop and a 20x20 run. Coop has an auto door which is set to close around dusk, before it gets really dark. Set up has worked great for 3 years. A week ago I realized that 4 chickens were sleeping on a roosting bar under the covered portion of the rung. They are the lower chickens in pecking order.

The week before, I had come back from vacation to my 12th chicken acting weird and being bullied. Took her to the vet and it turned out she had an enlarged heart or liver and they put her down. I am wondering if this started a bullying atmosphere in my flock and has created our sleeping problem?

Currently I am going outside before the door closes and pushing them through the coop door. Three now go in when they see me come into the run, but the 4th still needs to be shoved in. I also have to stand by door until it closes and make sure they don’t come back out.

Any thoughts on whether I am on right track or if there is something else I should be doing? Really don’t want to have to worry about being home at dusk every single night!

 

[AOrchard]

All 11 are 3 years old and have been in the flock together for years?

 

[aart]

Took her to the vet and it turned out she had an enlarged heart or liver and they put her down.

How did they know this....ultrasound?

I am wondering if this started a bullying atmosphere in my flock and has created our sleeping problem?

It could have....could have shook up the pecking order.
Have you been able to sit and watch what happens at roost time?
That can tell you a lot.

Might just need to set the door to close later?

 

[higginskzoo]

Flock is a mix of 1, 2 & 3 year olds. “Problem” hens are 1 & 2 year olds. Once they are all inside there is definitely an issue with all wanting to be on the top roosting bar. After a week of me watching and scolding it seems to be getting a bit better.
I will try setting door to close later and see if it helps.

As for poor sweet Violet, my deceased Lavender Orpington I took her to the vet after vacation. She was acting like an old lady despite being only 3. She would walk a few steps then sit. Seemed to be eating fine and pooping fine, other than huge clumps of poo on her butt from sitting in it. When I saw other chickens all bullying her I wondered at first if she was just being proactively passive. I separated her from the flock and decided to take her to vet to make sure there wasn’t a medical reason for her drop to the bottom of the pecking order. Vet diagnosed enlargement by doing an x-ray. She said it was pressing up on her lungs and that she would eventually suffocate. Sad, expensive end for a sweet girl.

 

[aart]

Maybe Violet was the head hen and peace keeper?

 

[Ridgerunner]

A 4x8 coop is not real big for 11 chickens. It can work, especially if they are not locked in there for really long periods of time. It sounds like it has been working until recently. I'm really wondering what the roosts look like. A photo might help[. There may be something you can do to help the situation.

That ruckus when they go to bed about who gets to sleep on the highest location is really common. The ones highest in the pecking order get to sleep where they want. Sometimes they have to enforce those pecking order rights to get to sleep where they want. With my flock there is some of that every night.

I'm leaning to what I think is Aart's theory. The pecking order has been shaken up. As a result those at the bottom are getting beaten up a bit at bedtime. To avoid the disruption they just sleep outside. I've had juveniles do that as they matured.

Where coop size comes into play is that you probably don't have any room to do things differently. That's why I like extra room, you have flexibility to do something when issues come up. But you probably don't have that option short of building another coop. I wouldn't do that in your situation. I think you can make it work.

My suggestion is to just keep doing what you are doing. They should eventually get things sorted out so they put themselves to bed in that coop. In somewhat similar situations I've had them catch on pretty quickly but I've had some take three weeks before the last ones got that message. Sounds like you may have one stubborn one. Good luck with it.

 

[higginskzoo]

Aart- Hard to imagine sweet quiet Violet as top of the flock but perhaps she was a quiet leader!
I have set the door to close later in the evening and will see if that makes a difference.

Ridgerunner- encouraging to hear yours sorted themselves out. I will be patient.
My coop is definitely borderline size wise. Typical newbie mistake. My plan is to discipline myself and work towards 8 chickens so nobody has to roost on a lower rung .......hard when there are so many fun and beautiful breeds out there! Fortunately their run is decent sized and partially covered so food and water are out there. Also they semi-free range spring-fall in a loosely fenced wooded area.

I will take a picture of coop later today. Pondering ways of reconfiguring roosting bars so I can have more top rung space. Don’t love current set up so might be opportunity to make my life easier as well.

 

[Chicalina]

Remove the lower roost bar and put it at the same level as the other one. Nobody likes to be on the lowest one!

 

[Borders3]

Is it not possible to reconfigure your roosts so that they are all on the same level?