Night time dramas

Butterbane

In the Brooder
Mar 27, 2019
7
8
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So I'm hoping that the more experienced chicken mama & papa's out there have the answer that I'm looking for.

I have 5 Red-sex link hens. They are all raised together and are 5 months old today. Since moving from the Nursery in the living room to their own home outside, all five have slept in the coop at night (mid-May). Every night they will line up on the veranda outside of their coop and then march into bed when the sun was settle. Occasionally one (usually the same one) would sleep down in the straw under the roost or in a nesting box. No biggie.

However, for the last two weeks. Two of my girls will watch as the other three file into the coop, and then they will lay down, snuggle up with each other, and fall asleep. Every night I have to pick them up, and put them to bed. Now, their run is completely enclosed with hardware fabric (top & bottom included), so I'm not overly worried about predators, but I do worry that it will get to cold at night, and I will wake up to frozen chicken nuggets.

Should I be concern that these two do not appear to want to sleep with their sisters? What do you think? I've attached a photo of their run & coop. It's an older photo … just before construction was completed … but you can see the coop on top, and the run below. The white board is where the girls fall asleep.
 

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Hi! :frow Welcome to BYC! Where are you? How cold is it getting at night? Chickens are pretty adaptable to cold weather, much more so than hot. I'm curious as to why they don't want to sleep with their sisters. What size is the coop? Is there 4 SF per bird? Space could be an issue. Roosting space could be an issue too. Also, what size is that run?
 
Guessing that coop is too small for 5 birds.
Dimensions and pics of inside coop might help here.

Also....
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, (laptop version shown), then it's always there!
upload_2019-8-30_16-31-46.png
 
the run is approximately 8 by 10 feet. Their coop is 4sf per bird with two roosts, and two nesting boxes. We are in the Pacific Northwest on the coast. Nights (currently) are in the 50's.
 
the run is approximately 8 by 10 feet. Their coop is 4sf per bird with two roosts, and two nesting boxes. We are in the Pacific Northwest on the coast. Nights (currently) are in the 50's.
What are the interior dimensions of the coop? Can you take a picture of the inside, please? That will help.
 
In addition to the above, the coop looks to be lacking in ventilation.
Space certainly looks to be an issue, especially now that your pullets are 5 months old.

The two walls that you cannot see also have the same ventilation: 5 3-inch screened holes.
 

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