Pullet has stopped roosting

[ScottyGill]

Hi I think I may know the answer, but just want to check. I have at this point 1 cockerel and 2 pullets 16 weeks, and the only surviving 12 week old. It's been a tough couple weeks. She is the Blue French Copper Marans. I was worried she'd miss her pal though I think at end she would be relieved as he started attacking her. Anyhow she now seems to be my CCL cockerel favourite. She and the CCL pulled at times scrap briefly. My CCL/BCM cross has never got involved. Ever. She keeps out of trouble and is only one who sits with me. The young ones hadn't roosted in the coop yet so went to check to see if Morag the Blue FCM was roosting. She was, but Lottie the quiet one was on the floor. She was always on the roost before. Is this because she is bottom of the pecking order. She spoke to me quite cheerfully when I peeked in, nothing worries me during the day. It's just it's gone cold and I'd have liked them all to snuggle together

 

[sourland]

How much roost space do they have ?

 

[ScottyGill]

How much roost space do they have ?

Plenty. The three are only using about a third of it. There's also two roosts they can use,

 

[azygous]

Have you spied on them at roosting time to watch what goes on? That will likely give you a clue.

I have a small sectioned off area in a second coop to house new chicks. The roost seems vast and spacious when they are just small five-week olds scrunched together on the perch. But now that they are full size seven-month olds, the four foot long perch is much too crowded with five of them on it. In fact, the fifth hen has moved out of this coop and has moved into the main coop where she doesn't have to try to crowd onto a perch since there is room to spare over there.

If the last one to roost doesn't have enough space to stretch and contract her wings as she flies up, it's going to be very uncomfortable for all of them, knocking some off the perch in the process.

I suggest you watch what's happening tonight and that should show you what steps you may need to take so this lone pullet can also roost as she needs to.

 

[ScottyGill]

Have you spied on them at roosting time to watch what goes on? That will likely give you a clue.

I have a small sectioned off area in a second coop to house new chicks. The roost seems vast and spacious when they are just small five-week olds scrunched together on the perch. But now that they are full size seven-month olds, the four foot long perch is much too crowded with five of them on it. In fact, the fifth hen has moved out of this coop and has moved into the main coop where she doesn't have to try to crowd onto a perch since there is room to spare over there.

If the last one to roost doesn't have enough space to stretch and contract her wings as she flies up, it's going to be very uncomfortable for all of them, knocking some off the perch in the process.

I suggest you watch what's happening tonight and that should show you what steps you may need to take so this lone pullet can also roost as she needs to.

Thanks. There is a roost that runs round two sides of the coop so it isn’t Lack of roosting space I don’t think but I’ll see if I can watch what’s going on tomorrow. I have read in other posts on here that the bottom bird sleeps in nest boxes or on floor so wondered if that could be it.

 

[aart]

I have read in other posts on here that the bottom bird sleeps in nest boxes or on floor so wondered if that could be it.

Probably exactly it.
Had the 16 and 12 week olds been integrated for long before the one younger one died?

 

[ScottyGill]

Probably exactly it.
Had the 16 and 12 week olds been integrated for long before the one younger one died?

They had been side by side since 4 weeks and integrated at 5. They had operated as two little flocks then one got sick 3 weeks ago and died. So the pullet and cockerel hung around together then I noticed the dynamics changing and my suspicion was the BCM cockerel was fighting for his place and the girls weren’t having it! It got really vicious one morning and he was I don’t know, is it flogging when using their feet, and had beakfuls of her feathers. So that helped us do what we knew we’d were going to have to do. I had offered him on various sites but no takers. We realise then it wasn’t going to get any better. Interestingly the boys never fought. Everything was calm after that, and after a couple of days on her own the cockerel made it clear she was with him. Lottie our maran/legbar cross has never made any moves for power, she’s just happy wherever she is. Nobody bothers her.

 

[Ted_Harrell]

Your one on the ground is probably on the bottom of the pecking order as far as the social dynamics go...

 

[ScottyGill]

Your one on the ground is probably on the bottom of the pecking order as far as the social dynamics go...

Thanks. But does that mean she’ll never want to go up on the roost.

 

[Ted_Harrell]

Don't know, hopefully she will roost...