New 19 week old pullets - signs of stress/not using roosts?

[MiaS]

I currently have seven birds so only 3 more than you and my coop is bigger so I figure we are in the same boat - lots of space and only a few little furnaces. If my incubation is successful there will be more but that introduces another complication of how much heat is supplied in their first six weeks when they need to have some "coolness" to encourage feather and down growth.

I am confident Woods will work, too many smart/experience people have experience with them and advocate for the approach; also I am damn sure my grandfather (Saskatchewan farmer) did not spend money or effort to heat no chicken coop too many other things to do.

Are you planning on brooding your babies in your Woods or elsewhere and then moving them?

 

[Ted Brown]

@Ted Brown, I can't remember if you have this in your beautifully made coop, but I find chickens like a stump or maybe a box to jump up on first, before going on up to the roost. Also, as a mid-way stop on their way off the roost. Some don't use it, but some will.
Congratulations on your first eggs! More to come soon!

It is a bit of work in progress. I started with a straight ramp with frets but I thought it was too steep so added a 6" by 6" about 2 feet long at the bottom to flatten it out, a good part of that is open so the ladies can jump up (no intention there just the way things worked out). I will add more frets so that their feet will always be on one to avoid slipping.

I appreciate your advice, the learning curve is steep!

 

[MiaS]

@Ted Brown, I can't remember if you have this in your beautifully made coop, but I find chickens like a stump or maybe a box to jump up on first, before going on up to the roost. Also, as a mid-way stop on their way off the roost. Some don't use it, but some will.
Congratulations on your first eggs! More to come soon!

We are so amused watching our girls get up there. Each one seems to have her own way and timing and it is a hoot to watch them squeeze each other out to get their favourite spot. Nightly entertainment Some use the 'Dr Seuss' ladder that I made and some just fly up there.

 

[Ted Brown]

My sister and BIL just returned from 20 minutes in the dark moving the ladies from their floor based huddle up and onto the roosts. We reviewed the various advice from @aart, @jthornton and @Lizzy733 and they followed it to a T.

The first two went well, set down and there they stayed, the 3rd fussed and jumped down immediately, the last 4 also easy and then the 3rd again, this time she stayed.

BIL placed them in the middle of the outer roost bar and they ended up side by side in that location; some turning about but at the end all facing south and together.

We will repeat the process for the next nights until they start to go up on their own.

What an adventure!

 

[Ted Brown]

Are you planning on brooding your babies in your Woods or elsewhere and then moving them?

I had planned on brooding in the Woods under the drop boards, HC in front giving controlled access. In the past few days I think we decided to do it inside in the basement but I am still sorting through how/what to build as a brooder (probably using @jthornton design for this) so things may change. I will keep you posted.

 

[Ted Brown]

i just checked on the ladies, all seven still up on the roost bar so they must have spent the night there. Light is breaking, they're just starting to move and make their soft cooing noises.

It will be interesting to see if/how they begin to make their own way up.

 

[aart]

They may provide an ingredient list if I ask (I will) but nothing on the bag.

You need the protein and calcium percentages as well as the ingredients. Most layer feed has 3-4% calcium. Oyster Shells 'on the side' is never a bad idea.

the whole front of my coop is OPEN!!!

As long as all the other openings are tightly closed(except the pop door during the day) it'll be fine. Most people don't understand the Woods concept, but you do!

but hoping @aart will get to say "I told ya so!"

I hope so too!!
The first winter is nerve racking. Best thing to remember is just because you are cold doesn't mean they are. ..and if you think they need heat, put on all your winter gear and sit inside your house by the wood stove. They can't take their down jackets off .

I had planned on brooding in the Woods under the drop boards, HC in front giving controlled access. In the past few days I think we decided to do it inside in the basement but I am still sorting through how/what to build as a brooder (probably using @jthornton design for this) so things may change. I will keep you posted.

It's a toughy, especially as we're going into winter. I finally built a 'Brooder Palace' about the same time I built the 'Pseudo Brooder Plate' and started brooding out in the coop a week after hatch to start integration early. But still need a brooder inside and a separate space in coop for integration.

Man, @Ted Brown, you are doing an all out trial by fire right off the bat!
Building a coop and brooder, getting POL pullets, incubating, and integration...and right into your first winter.

 

[Ted_Harrell]

They look kind of like Red sex links or commercial red layers. My sex links took a long time to warm up to the idea of a roost bar. Give them some time. Chickens don't read all the latest chicken books so not every chicken is the same. Have fun and enjoy.

 

[Ted Brown]

...

Man, @Ted Brown, you are doing an all out trial by fire right off the bat!
Building a coop and brooder, getting POL pullets, incubating, and integration...and right into your first winter.

It was not intentional but also not thoughtless... kinda like chicken math I guess just applied to things I need to get done. Sister and BIL have contributed to that by bringing fertilized eggs along but have also contributed enormously with their help and joy at all things chicken.

 

[Ted Brown]

They look kind of like Red sex links or commercial red layers. My sex links took a long time to warm up to the idea of a roost bar. Give them some time. Chickens don't read all the latest chicken books so not every chicken is the same. Have fun and enjoy.

They are ISA Browns, I believe hydrids. Obtained from a commercial hatchery in southern Ontario at 19 weeks old.