Need help encouraging them to roost at night

[Cryss]

Am I blind...or is there not a raised coop with a ramp in the pic above?

Looking at the picture I can see a triangular roof over a fenced area with what may or may not be a ramp inside that fence on the left side. Truthfully it is unclear due to not being able to see much through the fencing. I don't actually see a raised coop but I guess it could be there behind all that.

 

[Cryss]

My method has always been to lock them inside for several days so they begin to recognise this as home, a safe place. Then when I let them out they explore outside but return to the coop at night.

 

[dgriffi3]

Am I blind...or is there not a raised coop with a ramp in the pic above?

It’s not a great picture! The coop is attached to the run, and the ramp is inside the coop on the left of the photo. We have so many hawks, I don’t let them free range at all yet. Maybe when they are bigger.

I don’t think there is 1sq ft. per bird yet, but there will be when I expand the floor in a few weeks. Right now the raised floor only covers about a third of the coop area. When they get a little bigger (and I’m less busy!) I will add more.

Thanks!

 

[Cryss]

It’s not a great picture! The coop is attached to the run, and the ramp is inside the coop on the left of the photo. We have so many hawks, I don’t let them free range at all yet. Maybe when they are bigger.

I don’t think there is 1sq ft. per bird yet, but there will be when I expand the floor in a few weeks. Right now the raised floor only covers about a third of the coop area. When they get a little bigger (and I’m less busy!) I will add more.

Thanks!

1sqft per bird? They need 4sqft/bird indoors! And 10sqft/bird in the run! And that's minimal. More room is better. 9 birds need clear floor space (meaning no nests or feeders in that space) of 36sqft. A 4X9 coop would work, but more is better and it doesn't account for chicken math.
The run needs to be 90 sqft or more. A 10X10 would work but again not account for chicken math.
Crowding may also explain 3 not wanting to go inside and crying.
Don't feel bad about not letting them free range. If you give them a large covered run with things of interest they will be fine. I too have numerous hawks and owls. I watch them drooling perched in the tree limbs above the covered run. Nope. Not gonna free range.

 

[Criticalicious]

The night light method works. They will head towards the light and put themselves to bed. If they're the only ones in your setup, this should be enough to train them. You may need it for a few days or up to a week.

I do not recommend keeping food or water in the coop EVER because it can attract rats and other pests or predators, who can smell it. Your chickens will ignore it at night anyway. So unless you're sleeping in in the morning and they'll need those things until you get up to let them out, secure the food elsewhere like in the house or garage or a metal trash can (waterers are usually fine to leave in the run at all times).

If you are integrating them with existing birds however, you may need to provide them a safe place inside before they will feel comfortable going in with the big girls. Night time roosting is rambunctious and sometimes the littles get scared sitting so close to the bigs. Or the bigs kick them off! I have had success installing cardboard dividers to give the little ones privacy on the roost until they're big enough to hold their own.

 

[MountainWoman73]

I have always had to hunt down little chicks at that age and put them in at night. They figure it out in a few weeks. Try putting them at the top of the ladder instead of all the way in, then 90% of the way up, then 75% of the way up, then halfway... etc. I think this helps?

 

[dgriffi3]

I have always had to hunt down little chicks at that age and put them in at night. They figure it out in a few weeks. Try putting them at the top of the ladder instead of all the way in, then 90% of the way up, then 75% of the way up, then halfway... etc. I think this helps?

Thank you! This is what I did last night with the 3 stragglers. I think they either can't use the ladder yet or BELIEVE that they can't.

 

[dgriffi3]

1sqft per bird? They need 4sqft/bird indoors! And 10sqft/bird in the run! And that's minimal. More room is better. 9 birds need clear floor space (meaning no nests or feeders in that space) of 36sqft. A 4X9 coop would work, but more is better and it doesn't account for chicken math.
The run needs to be 90 sqft or more. A 10X10 would work but again not account for chicken math.
Crowding may also explain 3 not wanting to go inside and crying.
Don't feel bad about not letting them free range. If you give them a large covered run with things of interest they will be fine. I too have numerous hawks and owls. I watch them drooling perched in the tree limbs above the covered run. Nope. Not gonna free range.

While I was just out with them, a hawk swooped right past my head! They can't get into the run at all, but man did that reinforce my no-free-range position. Ugh.

Here is some more accurate info and some photos from another angle. I think they have plenty of space for now, and will have more than enough once I explained the floor.

Run: 18ft X 8 ft (144 sq. ft); 180 sq. ft including the attached coop.
Coop: 4.5 ft X 8 ft. (36 sq. ft exactly!)
Raised floor/roosting area: 2.5 X 4 ft (10 sq. ft) , plus an additional roosting bar running across the width (4.5 ft). I will eventually lay more flooring (hardware cloth) across that to expand the raised floor.

Right now, they prefer to sleep right on top of each other. The largest is only about a week older than the rest, and the little ones (silkie bantams) treat her like their mama. She sort of lays on them, actually. They definitely aren't hurting for space yet, but i can see that we will need to give them more soon.

Thanks!

 

[dgriffi3]

Success! I was at work later than I expected, so by the time I brought the light out 7 of the 9 were already in. I watched the remaining 2 for about 5 minutes--talk about entertaining! They kept chirping up at their pals like "how did you get up there? How can we join you?" One even flew up to me--up against the hardware cloth--like "can you help me?" Finally, one figured out the ladder--and the other wasn't watching, so she freaked a little out a little when she saw she was alone. I ran in to get my camera, and when I came out they were all up there laying on top of each other.

You'd never know it, but there are nine of them piled in here. TONS of empty space, they just like to sleep on top of each other.

Thanks for the tips!

 

[starri33]

So happy for you they figured it out, When I hatch chicks, I get the first two eating and drinking then the rest play follow the leader, same for getting them into the coop, when we built the new coop, took about 3 days of moving them, they figured it out. Just added 9 more, same thing, first night I had to shift them, 2nd night they all figured out where the coop was, but not the roost, 3rd night, I had to move 4 of them out of the nest boxes, 4th night I had to move 5 of them out of the nestboxes, I am going to go back to blocking them till they figure out that they are not where they are suppose to be sleeping, there is more than enough room based on the text book allotment for them, 4 sq ft in coop and 10 sq ft in run. Piling up is normal for chicks, mine are in the house, perfect temp for them and I check the tote to find the chick version of a dog pile.