Not roosting?

[KWVT]

My chicks just transitioned into my coop. I had a small two level roost that was in the brooder. I moved that roost to the coop along with two other higher roosts. The lowest is about 6" high and there are options between that and maybe 18" high along with a higher roost intended for when they get bigger.

At night at least half of them had been roosting on the lower roosts in the brooder (6-12"). The rest would sleep on the floor. They are now on a lip by the door that is maybe 3" high and the rest are sleeping on the floor. Will they eventually go back to the roost or do I need to somehow encourage them?

 

[Kiki]

How old are the chicks?
You could move them up onto the roost at night until they get the hang of it.
Maybe add a ladder up to the highest one to make it easy for them to get up there?

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

When I move chicks to their new coop, I actually go out after dark and physically pick up any sleeping in a little pile on the floor and place them on the roost (if you do it while it's still light, they'll get down again, so wait until dark or near dark and use a dim light or red light on a headlamp). They vary in how quickly they pick it up, but provided they can get to it, they are usually roosting on their own in a couple days, tops.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

How old are the chicks?
You could move them up onto the roost at night until they get the hang of it.
Maybe add a ladder up to the highest one to make it easy for them to get up there?

Jinx!

 

[getaclue]

Give it a little more time. They are a bit young, and it's a new situation for them. They'll catch on.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Give it a little more time. They are a bit young, and it's a new situation for them. They'll catch on.

True, they may, but sometimes not the way you want. I have a group that slept on the floor for almost a year. When they finally decided they wanted to roost, they refused to do so in the coop, and only sleep in the enclosed run. It's not what I really wanted them to do (I wanted them to roost over a poop board). So I started relocating chicks after that batch...

(Of course, they may have just been a contrary group...)

 

[cowboyclayt]

I have the same problem. I will try putting them on the roosting bars.

 

[KWVT]

They are 5-6 weeks old. Should I move them to the permanent roost (counter height-ish over a poop board) or to a lower level temporary roost? I added the lower roost because that was faster for me than throwing in a ladder to get to the higher one.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

You could put them on a low one first. (Though they may surprise you at being able to jump/fly to the big roost)

 

[RonC]

I never showed mine how or where to roost. They figure it out on their own. One will start roosting and the others have to do the same thing like kids.