Roosts for silkies....

[donnap1967]

Since they don't fly, how high should their roost be?

 

[Chirpy]

Great question and one that I'm asking myself. I have my first Silkies and will need to address this issue soon also.

I've heard that a roost for Silkies should just be inches off the floor??

I'm hoping someone with Silkies will jump in here and give us the correct answer.

 

[pixiechick]

I have only one little silkie who wants to hang with the big kids so every night I have to pick her up and sit her up there beside her favorite polish. My mom's silkies just sleep on the floor of their little coop.

 

[marie_martin]

Some of my silkies roost and some do not. They get on the roost by themselves but there is a lower rung that they hop on first and then to the higher one. I would say the higher one is about 2 feet off the ground. Not very high.

Marie

 

[flip9109]

my highest roost is about 4ft and my silkies hop their way up to it every night. some can get there in one jump others use things for steps.

 

[seminolewind]

Mine are happy with a roost one foot off the ground.

 

[donnap1967]

Thanks for the replies! You guys are so helpful, I love this site!

 

[raven880]

Mine mostly sleep on the floor but one uses a nest box about 3 ft off the floor and she uses other lower perches to get to it.
Here is a shot before I put the nest box in. I"ve never seen the rooster (white one) up on the roosts.

They have free run of the room and now that I have other breeds of chickens that use that cage to roost in, the silkies don't roost there.

Paula

 

[dlhunicorn]

silkies in general do not like to roost... I have raised floor (bout fifteen inches high or so) and I use the low-sided cardboard boxes that apples and oranges come in filled with shavings for them to sleep in (I offered them several choices and this is what they chose!) ... (I recently built a summer coop for them and you can see pics in the thread How do you build a coop for the poor and unhandy) ...since they only use the coop to sleep in and I have only silkies , a "normal" coop with so much space needed for roosts and such isnt necessary and having a small coop keeps the warmth in during the winter!