"NEW" Chicken Owner

[jerseychicken]

Hi fellow chicken owners!
I am new to this website and to owning chickens. I'm sure my questions have be asked over a hundred times and im sorry if its repetitive. I am the owner of 2 Buff Orpingtons age 3weeks. They are happily searching for bugs and worms in their coop as i sit here and write this. Last night was their first night with me. Here are the questions i have- how much bedding should i have in their coop? Should i move their food and water from their run into their coop ever night or should i not offer them food and water at night? Do i need to show them where their food is in their run or will they figure it out on their own? also they will go up the ladder to get back in their coop but they wont come down on their own. i took them out myself this morning and put them in their run. is that also something they will figure out? Thanks for your help, JerseyChicken

 

[Amastacia]

(1) Hi fellow chicken owners!
I am new to this website and to owning chickens. I'm sure my questions have be asked over a hundred times and im sorry if its repetitive. I am the owner of 2 Buff Orpingtons age 3weeks. They are happily searching for bugs and worms in their coop as i sit here and write this. Last night was their first night with me. Here are the questions i have- (2)how much bedding should i have in their coop? (3)Should i move their food and water from their run into their coop ever night or should i not offer them food and water at night? (4)Do i need to show them where their food is in their run or will they figure it out on their own? (5)also they will go up the ladder to get back in their coop but they wont come down on their own. i took them out myself this morning and put them in their run. is that also something they will figure out? Thanks for your help, JerseyChicken

1) Hi

2) i was always told enough bedding so that when they jump off the roosts they don't hurt themselves. i usually aim for an inch or two of shavings. this is a topic there are a lot of different thoughts on, so you may want to read some of the threads on it. lots of good info out there.

3) it doesn't matter if you offer them food and water at night, they won't eat/drink in the dark. they pretty much just sleep.

4) i'm pretty sure they will find it. though sometime people suggest dipping their beaks in the water so they know where it is. i did that with my new chicks last year, but didn't when i moved them to the coop, so i'm not sure how important it is, at least with a simple water dish. chicken nipples might be a different story.

5) they will probably figure it out, but i know most people recommend leaving them in the coop for a few days so they figure out that it is home and to go back there at night. the ladder itself might just take time, though if it is too steep it might be a problem.

hope that helps some, and there is a lot of good info around here. good luck with your birds

 

[jerseychicken]

Thanks so much!

 

[WoodlandWoman]

An inch or two is great advise. I always start with enough litter to cover the floor. If they are moving around in the coop and the litter is so thin that it shifts around to reveal bare floor, Just add some more.

They need food and water available to them during the hours they are awake. If you leave them to go out on their own and they spend all day in the coop, I would leave the food and water in the coop.

When chickens have to learn to use ladders or steep ramps, it can take them a little longer to figure it out or be brave enough to do something new. If you're lucky, you have at least one very brave chicken in your flock that will lead the way, trying new things. Otherwise, it can speed things up if you take a couple of minutes to teach them. It's good they're going in on their own. In the morning, instead of taking them out and placing them on the floor of the run, try placing them on the ladder towards the bottom. That way it's easier for them to go down. Placing chickens on a ramp close to the end, going up or down, usually teaches mine in a hurry.

I teach puppies to do the stairs the same way. I only have them do a couple of steps the first time, up or down. It's less daunting for them. They always learn to go up first, too. That long distance looking down is always scarier.

 

[jerseychicken]

one other thing, how far off the ground does the perch need to be? Mine is only a half inch off the floor of the coop.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

For roosts, they should be high enough that the chickens aren't roosting in poop, when hunched down on the roost. They should also be higher than the nest boxes, so the chickens don't try to roost in or on the nest boxes. Other than that, they aren't usually that picky. They do like to roost higher, rather than lower. Since I favor heavy breeds, I usually don't go higher than 4' just so it's easier on their legs and feet, jumping down. I've had a couple roost in the rafters above my head.

 

[jerseychicken]

Great! Thanks!