Pullets Sleeping in Trees: Can't Solve the Situation

[ChickenLeg]

M

That sounds like a pretty good plan and I'll implement it tomorrow. I love these chickens to death, but oh boy, can they be frustrating!

Thanks for the advice, everyone! I hope these pullets finally stop roosting in the trees.

Best of luck! You'll get it worked out in time, let us know how everything goes

 

[STACEYH]

Id skip a day or 2 of feeding them then feed them in the late afternoon inside the coop area. Start only feeding them in the evening inside the coop and locking them in after they go inside for a few weeks. Should be enough to start a new routine then you can go back to your old way of feeding. If they revert to sleeping in trees then might be best to keep on with the evening feedings if all else fails

I would get some tree netting before you let them out. If you net the trees so they are unable to get in them the habit can't continue after you let them out.

 

[NatJ]

Id skip a day or 2 of feeding them then feed them in the late afternoon inside the coop area. Start only feeding them in the evening inside the coop and locking them in after they go inside for a few weeks. Should be enough to start a new routine then you can go back to your old way of feeding. If they revert to sleeping in trees then might be best to keep on with the evening feedings if all else fails

Or see if they like wet food. Most chickens like it enough to come running when they see you bring it.

So serving wet food inside the coop in the evening could lure them all in without needing to take away food during the day.

If you distribute the wet food in several dishes, or spread it out along a board, the pullets should be able to get their share without the hens bothering them too much. That makes it easier to get them all inside at once and close the door.

 

[saving grace]

I would get some tree netting before you let them out. If you net the trees so they are unable to get in them the habit can't continue after you let them out.

I'm not sure how that would work. These are really big trees.

 

[bobbi-j]

I had some pullets earlier this fall that insisted on roosting in the trees. I broke them by going out right before roost time and chasing them away from the trees. A couple of them insisted on going into the area, so I employed my dog. (The chickens were still on the ground at this point.) My dog loves to play fetch, so I threw the ball toward where the chickens were, and when the dog went after the ball, he scared the chickens out of the grove. A couple of nights of that, and the chickens decided they’d rather go in the coop than be harassed.

Is there a way to build a smaller attached run to your coop?

 

[STACEYH]

You start at the trunk , then lift the netting around the bottom limbs going as high up as you can. The birds won't have a limb low enough to get on.

 

[saving grace]

Is there a way to build a smaller attached run to your coop?

There probably is, but I really don't want to lessen how much run space they have. I really like knowing that they have enough, and much more, to roam in.

You start at the trunk , then lift the netting around the bottom limbs going as high up as you can. The birds won't have a limb low enough to get on.

I see. If all else fails I'll think on that!

 

[bobbi-j]

There probably is, but I really don't want to lessen how much run space they have. I really like knowing that they have enough, and much more, to roam in.


I see. If all else fails I'll think on that!

They would only need to be in the smaller area (within the bigger area) for a few weeks. Then you could leave that portion open. My thinking was that it would give them more space than being locked in a coop for days or weeks