Overcrowding problem

[moodlymoo]

Quote:
3 are about to start any time now but as of today nobody is laying

 

[Mommy 2 Wee Ones]

I have 14 hens & 1 roo in a 6 x 6 coop. 10 are the older flock by 2 & 4 weeks, then there is the 5 younger. After I got them merged, they still stayed separate. I made a roosting bar, 3 rungs, all they use it for is to hop onto the 2 ft wide shelf that is 3 ft high off the ground.
The 5 younger ones used the shelf right away, the original 10 puppy piled on the floor in the corner.

This went on for 2 weeks, then Light Dawned On Marble Head....

Maybe it would be better if we were up there too. Now all 15 are up there, and the 5 younger, cram together in a corner of the shelf or the olders will pick on them.

I had the nest box in at the very beginning, and for a while they would go in & out and poop in it, but never to sleep. Still thinking about putting a second shelf below the top one, so see if the youngers will use it & have more space to spread out and not get picked or pecked on.

Is your nest box removable? If they are not laying yet, take it out for a while & see if that forces them to use the roosting bar. I also heard not to use the dowels because their feet are exposed to the cold, where as the 2 x 4, they can tuck their feet under them & keep them warm.

 

[moodlymoo]

I cant take the nest boxes out. Thats what I was told the same thing about the roost. I originally has a pole and the toes met on the bottom so I knew it was a nono. I guess I need to put cardboard in the boxes to block them.

 

[moodlymoo]

Well I went in there with a red light and after 20min of fighting to put them on the roost and stay there my son and I gave up. It went like this...put 1 up, turn around to get another and the first one is running back to the nest box. At one point we had all of them up for a few seconds and then they all jumped off at the same time. Grrrrrrr it is so frustrating. Tomorrow before everyone heads in for the night we will be completely blocking off the boxes. I just want to make sure they are open during the day so if someone decides its time to lay they can get to the boxes. 3 of my girls are about 20 weeks so were getting close to laying I hope

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Quote:
That's exactly right, a round roost will cause frostbitten toes in very cold weather.
They also prefer a flatter surface, I don't think their roosting mechanism is the same as smaller tree birds.

Most of my birds like to roost as high as possible. In my taller buildings the roosts are about 4' and 6' above bedding and the first ones in go all the way into the rafters, the later birds have to settle for the roosts.
I think your plan to block the nest will work, they'll have no choice but to go up to the roost or sleep in a corner.