New chicken owner.....help!

[Bdbutton]

Hi all, I just bought my first chickens yesterday and would really like to free range them. How do I coax them out of the coop and get them to go back in?
Also, they are not roosting on their roosts but instead sleeping on the floor all huddled together.

 

[chickengirl778]

Try bribing them to come out with treats or just take them out and lock them out of the coop. It sounds harsh, but they will learn. You may have to nudge them up the walkway to the coop the first few nights as well, but they will catch on. Place them on the roosting bars after dark so they don't move!

 

[Percheron chick]

Best to leave them n he coop for a week or so. They must learn that the coop is home and where safety is. They sound young. Birds typically don't roost at night until they are around 8 weeks old. They,'ll figure it out.

 

[Bdbutton]

Thank you chicken girl. I’ll give that a try.

 

[Bdbutton]

My chickens are 4 1/2 months old and 2 1/2 months old. I’m thinking they don’t roost at night because they really had no place to roost when I bought them. Hopefully they will learn. Thank you.

 

[Amz87]

Hi all, I just bought my first chickens yesterday and would really like to free range them. How do I coax them out of the coop and get them to go back in?
Also, they are not roosting on their roosts but instead sleeping on the floor all huddled together.

The person we got our girls from said to keep them confined to their coops for at least a week, this way they know where their safe place is. Two of our girls were in for 2 weeks and 2 were just one week as we got them a week apart. We have had no issues getting them to go in at night and they free range on 5 acres, they even go next door and still come back at 4:40pm to put themselves to bed. They also learned to sleep on their roosts after a couple of weeks but tended to sleep on the nesting boxes until I shut them off until they learned to use the roosts.

 

[Peppercorngal]

I agree, keep them in the coop/run for a week minimum so they know where "home" is. Then one day open the door. They will wander out but probably not to far at first. Maybe only 5 feet out or so. Little by little they will go further if they feel safe to do so. They will automatically return "home" to spend the night. As for roosting, if they don't, they will learn. I was given a year old hen that never roosted because she never had one! It did take some time, but now she roosts on the 7 foot roost! They learn to roost where they feel the safest. Good luck and enjoy your chickens!

 

[Bdbutton]

Ok, thank you both. I will leave them in the coop at least another week then let them out. I hope they go back in on their own. Wish me luck!

 

[Peppercorngal]

Ok, thank you both. I will leave them in the coop at least another week then let them out. I hope they go back in on their own. Wish me luck!

Don't worry, no matter what they will be fine. They will learn you are where the food comes from and love you forever!

 

[4 ever Orpington]

Hi all, I just bought my first chickens yesterday and would really like to free range them. How do I coax them out of the coop and get them to go back in?
Also, they are not roosting on their roosts but instead sleeping on the floor all huddled together.