Yes the chickens do try to sit on the wooden edges but what I like is when I see one she is faced butt inward - win-win. They are only 8 weeks and the first jump for some is the wooden edges for others it is right up to the perch. I've seen some get pushed off into the hammock but they get right out - its not perfect and they are establishing their pecking order of who sits where. All in all - it works AWESOME! We are going to remove the other T part of the perch because half our birds are meat birds and will not be wintering so the space isn't needed as we first thought it might be.