Rooster will not climb up anything. Causing a problem

[YourChickHasAPastyButt]

My black australorp rooster will not roost or climb up anything. Wouldn't care except when night time rolls around, he won't even climb back into the coop, so I end up with 3 rhode island reds and couple barred rocks that will always stay with him and it becomes a battle to get him into the coop. Any suggestions? Tried making a much easier tread for him to walk up, but this bird simply will not get off whatever is ground level to him.

 

[sourland]

Can you post a picture of your coop and the ramp to the entryway ?

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Obvious question, but it must be asked: Have you waited until it is nearly full dark to see if he will go in?

I have a few hens who like to dither around after everyone else has gone in, to clean up the last scraps in case someone missed one. One rooster always stays out with them, until he can finally get them to GO TO BED already! And then he's the last one in. Good boy, Roofuss. Good boy!

 

[aart]

Can you post a picture of your coop and the ramp to the entryway ?

This^^^ please @YourChickHasAPastyButt

 

[YourChickHasAPastyButt]

Ok... so to answer some requests.. I have waited until it is pitch black outside to go and place him back in the coop. His entourage stays with him, so I have to place them back in the coop as well (although none of those 5 have any issue with roosting). I even added a shallower angled ramp with 2x2 treads and this is still continuing. He is right now at sunset staying under the coop and trying to call out the Ameraucanas and ISA brown from the coop instead of going in which would result in the RIR's and BR's following. If this doesn't stop, I'm gonna have to cull this rooster, and I really don't want to.

By the time I started to post this, he stayed underneath the coop and kept trying to call the others back out of the coop right up until sundown. Really hope someone has a solution to this, but coop design isn't changing at this point. What was the door is now a vent I need to put a hinged cover over for when it gets really cold out and I've added a longer, shallower ramp from the floor level of the coop on down. I'm telling you this bird will not even jump up on a brick. When the first bird leaves the coop in the morning, he's the next one to follow, but he never goes back in.

I really hope someone has a solution here. I've grown quite fond of him, but I can't have this... We have far too many predators here (coyotes, fishers, bobcats, and black bear) for him to keep them outside and sitting at ground level drawing them in.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

Wow your coop is beautiful. I want one! VERY nice job.
You do have a 'special' case with this boy, don't you?
How about trying this, since it's pretty successful at breaking bad habits of broody hens or aggressors: Put him in a wire dog kennel or other cage INSIDE the coop for a couple of days or a week, with food and water. Let him out of the cage at night to roost, but come morning, right back into the cage.

And I wonder if you could do some "therapy" with him, separate from the hens. This is NOT something I've experienced, nor have I heard of it.... but it makes sense, to me: Teach him to climb a low stack of bricks by putting treats on the top one. Increase the height of the stack as he gets the hang of it. THEN maybe, put treats on the coop ramp - from bottom to top. (Roosters hate for others to give *his* hens treats; HE wants to be the one to show them!) Could you try that, perhaps? It might be a last-ditch effort to avoid culling him.

 

[YourChickHasAPastyButt]

Thank you for the kind words and the suggestion. I will give that a try. He keeps going under the coop in the front right corner, which is the same place he beds down at night in the coop. Not sure why, so I'm also going to go in before it starts to get dark and block off underneath the coop to see if at least he will go back up into the coop. Still have to finish a small door from the coop to the run and attach a bar so I can just open it from the outside in the mornings.

 

[3KillerBs]

Have you given him a very thorough physical exam to ensure that he doesn't have some kind of physical problem that prevents him from using his legs correctly?

Does he mount the hens?

 

[YourChickHasAPastyButt]

He is fit as a fiddle. No problem outside of this mental block he seems to have, he will jump up on things and over them, no obvious health issues otherwise. He has been mounting the hens. I've tried holding him and walking him up the ramp first and then the rest follow him in. I've tried putting his normal loyals in first (which is a battle as he keeps calling them back outside) and seeing if that will inspire him to go in. I've even tried putting him halfway up the ramp and he just jumps off. If I put him two steps from the entrance he goes in. Today I used some blocks under the bottom of the ramp to shallow the angle even more. He still stays at ground level until past sundown. I don't think I have much choice at this point. If I put the hens in first that stay with him, all he does is call them back outside. I've never heard of a rooster doing this.

 

[YourChickHasAPastyButt]

This^^^ please @YourChickHasAPastyButt

Are you seeing anything else I could do here, aart? I even made the angle shallower to the entrance today using blocks.