New coop after storm. How do I get them to use it?

[Bluesilkies]

Hey everyone, a few weeks back we had an aggressive cyclone that caused severe flooding and damage to my run. Through some miracle, all but two of my chickens were saved, their two homes were completely destroyed.

I had a great set up with a “main house” which also had their food and nesting boxes, then a smaller house that I used for integrating new hens or babies. Almost all of them started in the small house and naturally moved themselves over to the main house. Well after the flood I only had the foundation and posts left of the main house and a tree that had broken into the spot where that was. It took two weeks to get a new coop built. In the meantime everyone has been sleeping in the broken tree. They have a beautiful new house to live in now, in a different location (safer from flooding) but I am struggling to get them to sleep in it.
I have been moving them in every night, and lock them in until mid morning. I can’t lock them in longer until the weather cools (autumn here now). Unfortunately, unlike my old set up, they are either locked in their house with no access to outside or, they have complete access to the whole property. I put a light in there tonight hoping that would encourage them, it didn’t.

I’m not sure what to do. It rains here all the time so I really want them in a safe house asap.
Is there anything else I can do? Will I have to keep moving them in until it finally clicks?

 

[aart]

Will I have to keep moving them in until it finally clicks?

If you can't lock them into coop for a few days, yes.

Is there anything else I can do?

Add more ventilation to new coop so they can stay in there all day?

 

[HollowOfWisps]

How long has it been since you started trying to get them in the new coop?

 

[Bluesilkies]

How long has it been since you started trying to get them in the new coop?

Only a week. I just thought they would have taken to it by now, especially the younger ones who have been sleeping in the wet grass.

 

[Bluesilkies]

If you can't lock them into coop for a few days, yes.


Add more ventilation to new coop so they can stay in there all day?

It has good ventilation and they really wouldn’t overheat in there, they just looked so pathetic when I checked on them and I felt mean, so I let them out. I decided to wait for the weather to cool.

Will they eventually take to it if I keep putting them in there at night? I’ve only ever done this method with one rooster before, he figured it out in days

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Only a week. I just thought they would have taken to it by now, especially the younger ones who have been sleeping in the wet grass.

It will definitely take longer than a week for them to get used to it without locking them in. It may even take a month or so. Eventually they will get it and start to go in on their own.

 

[drycreek]

I built a new coop and it took me almost three weeks of putting them in every night before they started going in on their on.

 

[Bluesilkies]

It will definitely take longer than a week for them to get used to it without locking them in. It may even take a month or so. Eventually they will get it and start to go in on their own.

Oh no, we will be full winter if it takes a few months. I may have to bite the bullet this weekend and lock them in.

Is there any other way to get them in without carrying them in or locking them? I had great success using a light to encourage a bunch of babies into the coop once, but they had been raised in the house so may have been more attracted to light than these guys.

 

[Bluesilkies]

I built a new coop and it took me almost three weeks of putting them in every night before they started going in on their on.

Hmm 3 weeks is definitely doable.

Was your coop in the same Location as the last one? I’m wondering if that is part of why they keep going back the the foundations of the last one

 

[drycreek]

No, but it was only about 15 feet from where the old one was at.