one hen sleeping on floor?

[redhouse]

hi all,

i've got four little ladies, all about 8 months old, who are weathering their first winter in the coop. all has been well, even in unseasonably cold temps here in portland.
i did put a (very secure) clip light with a 150w ceramic bulb heater near the roost area of their coop, just to keep their little combs from freezing off when it gets down into the teens at night. i actually haven't even felt the need to turn it on since i put it in there 2 days ago as it's warmed up a bit the past couple nights (stays around 30 degrees)
all my girls have always roosted together at night, two on each side of their roost. but for the past couple of nights, my australorp has been sleeping on the floor, directly below the other girls (and kind of in the 'line of fire', which can't be good!)
i was worried that she was hurt, so i went in with a flashlight last night and sort of poked and prodded her, checked wings, legs, poked at her little belly, and she didn't protest, so i figure she's most likely physically fine....
she's definitely at the bottom of the pecking order, so then i thought maybe it was a status thing? maybe my bossy barred rock edged her off the roost?
OR could she just be freaked out by the presence of this funny looking new silver thing looming over the roost and not want to be anywhere near it?
she did just start this floor thing, as far as i can tell, the same day that the 'light' went in the coop. again, it's not even been turned on, so being too warm isn't a worry.

think i'll try removing the light all together in the morning and see if that helps tomorrow night...
but my main worry is that she could be sick, that there's something wrong with her that i can't see.
any ideas? or am i just being overly paranoid?

 

[Emzyyy]

My silkies all sleep on the floor in a mini coop inside my big coop just for them so they don't get pooped on. The ducks also sleep in the mini coop, keeps them nice and warm. Anyway I have one little silver sebright girl that just loves to sleep in there with them, don't know why she can fly.

I think some birds just like to be different. Did you try putting her on the roost at night after all the chickens are asleep and see if they pick on her or push her off?

 

[WriterofWords]

I've got several that prefer to sleep on the floor rather than on the perch with everyone else!

 

[ZooMummzy]

I have a few who prefer the floor too...a couple who like the nest boxes and a few who sleep in the drop pans!

 

[cook_kaka_ook]

My lone silkie prefer to sleep on the floor too together with my brahma roo. They're both 17 weeks old. The rest of the flock roost about five feet from the floor on an old x'mas tree trunk.

 

[Stephanie-n-Hayden]

My silky likes to sleep on the floor all by herself right under the perch. She's white, so you can imagine what the top of her head looks like in the morning after sleeping underneath the RIR hen all night. yuk!