Rogue Hen

[pwappers]

I have a hen that refuses to come in the coop at night. Instead she perches all my herself at the top of a ladder leading against our house. The only way to get her inside is if I pick her up and put her in when I close the door at night. Fine for now with the warm weather, but concerned if she continues to do this in the winter. Any suggestions? She lays her eggs in a patch of grass right outside the coop.

 

[Judy]

How old is she? How long has this been going on? Your approach might change her ways in time.
And, depending where you live, she might decide to come in out of the cold later on.

 

[pwappers]

She is 2.5 years old. If the garage door is open she comes in and finds a roost inside there, but not in the coop. Maybe she is just an outcast. Oh well, we'll see what happens.

 

[jjthinkagain]

Some years back, I adopted out 2 roos that had shown up in my life out of nowhere (my PC [pre-chicken] days) and at that time I didn't have proper accomodations so I found them a home with a nice person. Unfortunately one of the roos was not well accepted by this person's flock and the poor thing stayed outside the coop at night, hanging out with the ducks under the guy's porch (I did not know this). Sadly one day it was taken by a pred in the middle of the night. I felt horrible about it. It's just not safe out there.
JJ

 

[Cavendish Chickens]

I would have to agree with jj. It is NOT safe outside. Cats, dogs, hawks, owls, coyotes, raccoons, etc. There are way too many dangers. I have a fenced in area around the coop for my chickens to keep them safe day and night. When I put my hens in with my rooster, he didn't accept them as quickly as I'd have liked. So the girls tried to sleep on top of the coop that night, and it was cold. So we picked them up and put them inside. The smaller, brown one seemed to understand and slept on one of the perches. The white one just wouldn't stay in the coop and spent the whole night on top of the coop. But she was okay, did good. Now they all share the coop at night, which is great. Different story during the day. If the roo is in there, he chases them out (unless they go up on the roost... he won't/can't get up there). If he's outside, he chases them around out there. I'm guessing he won't stop this behavior until they are of breeding age. We probably won't hatch any chicks though because they'd be mixed breeds (speckled sussex - roo, white and light brown leghorns - hens). I think the only reason people would won't the mixed breed babies would be to fatten them up to eat. And that's something I don't want a part of. (Even though I do eat chicken - store bought.)

There are a lot of things that could be stopping her from wanting to be in the coop. Lack of space (too crowded), bullied by the rest of the flock, or maybe she just doesn't like it. Check all possibilities and try to make her feel more at home best you can. Good luck!