I have 3 nearly 6 months old hens who were just beginning to fly over the fence through some creative hopping. I clipped their wings this weekend and now their new behavior is to put themselves to bed very early and they actually go into the coop around 5:30 PM with 2 1/2 hours of daylight remaining. Is this normal?
Previously they would get on top of the coop (which is one of those small coops I’ve purchased from Amazon) And would not want to go inside the coop at all. They are roosting comfortably on an additional roosting bar that I placed high up inside the coop with a laddering system making it easy for them to climb. Perhaps the lack of ability to hop/fly with stability has prompted them to just walk into the coop and at an earlier time due to fear. They were managing to roost on top of the 7 foot fence and required me to manually put them in the coop each night.
Thoughts? Could they be depressed? I give them the run of the yard inside a larger fenced area a few times per week offering fresh grass and plenty of areas to explore.
Previously they would get on top of the coop (which is one of those small coops I’ve purchased from Amazon) And would not want to go inside the coop at all. They are roosting comfortably on an additional roosting bar that I placed high up inside the coop with a laddering system making it easy for them to climb. Perhaps the lack of ability to hop/fly with stability has prompted them to just walk into the coop and at an earlier time due to fear. They were managing to roost on top of the 7 foot fence and required me to manually put them in the coop each night.
Thoughts? Could they be depressed? I give them the run of the yard inside a larger fenced area a few times per week offering fresh grass and plenty of areas to explore.
