roost

[graggy]

getting my coop ready and have a question about the roost. if I use 2x3s should the wide side of the board face up or should the narrow side. I'm thinking of about 40 inches high is this too much? Do chickens fly up onto it from inside the coop? I didnt know if they could fly up like that from being in a 6 ft square. Thanks for your help

 

[lauralou]

The wide side of the board faces up.

I have a coop that is about 6X6 also. The problem isn't when they fly up to the roost, it's when they fly down. If the roost is too high, they will careen into walls on their dismount. I'm guessing that my roost is about 3 feet high. So far, no problems. I used to have higher roosts (staggered) in a similar sized coop, and although the birds loved the higher roosts, it seemed to me that it was a problem. Although no one ever actually got hurt.

Also, some chickens don't fly as well as others. All of mine can get on the roost easily. I'm pretty sure that silkies don't fly well, but I don't have any myself, so I can't tell you that from experience.