Should I let them sleep in the nesting box?

[I Love Feather Babies]

I wish. Understandably, my family doesn’t want it taking up to much of the garage. We made it in such a way where it would be hard to expand. The “coop” part is actually separate from the “run” part, you can wheel them away from each other to clean it out more easily.
I suppose I could tear away that half wall on the coop part and somehow make the lower roost come out further, but they wouldn’t quite be under the same roof. It might be worth a shot though.

The coop does look well built. I would try to put hardware cloth over the chicken wire. More protection. I know they are in the garage, but people have had rats, opossums and raccoons get in garages before.

 

[Lardson]

You want poopy eggs? I wouldnt let them. If they arent roosting then that certainly isnt normal. Do you turn off the lights at night for your chickens? do they go outside at all?

 

[Amelise]

You want poopy eggs? I wouldnt let them. If they arent roosting then that certainly isnt normal. Do you turn off the lights at night for your chickens? do they go outside at all?

They go outside for most of the day (see disclaimer at bottom of post). They get light through a screen door. It seems like they don’t have enough space away from the hen. We’re figuring out a way to remodel the roosting area a bit.

 

[Amelise]

The coop does look well built. I would try to put hardware cloth over the chicken wire. More protection. I know they are in the garage, but people have had rats, opossums and raccoons get in garages before.

Ok, I’ll see about doing that.

 

[Lardson]

They go outside for most of the day (see disclaimer at bottom of post). They get light through a screen door. It seems like they don’t have enough space away from the hen. We’re figuring out a way to remodel the roosting area a bit.

I would have it low on one end so they atlest know its there or try it out, not sure how yours is structured though.

 

[Amelise]

I would have it low on one end so they atlest know its there or try it out, not sure how yours is structured though.

Look at the previous posts and pictures, you can see how it’s structured. One is lower and one is higher, but I think they need to be further apart.

 

[Lardson]

Look at the previous posts and pictures, you can see how it’s structured. One is lower and one is higher, but I think they need to be further apart.

Shouldnt matter too much how far apart they are, how long have you had these chickens?

 

[Amelise]

Shouldnt matter too much how far apart they are, how long have you had these chickens?

I’ve had Henrietta for about 4 years and the other three are pullets. I moved the pullets in with the hen about… a month or more ago.

 

[Amelise]

Shouldnt matter too much how far apart they are, how long have you had these chickens?

I’d say they’re used to each other (they flock together), but the pullets are still kind of scared of her, even though they’re bigger.

 

[Farmgirl283420]

Today, my pullets are 25 weeks old. One is already squatting like she’s about to lay.
They are currently living with one older hen, who knows how to roost.
They sleep in the roosting area of the coop which has two roost bars and a dropping board below it. In the same area, and off to the side, there is an opening to the nesting box. This is where all three pullets like to sleep. I’ve been blocking it off, which causes them to sleep on the board. I’ve only had one of them sleep on one of the perches and she’s only done it twice.
I think maybe the hen (Henrietta) might be scaring them away from the perch. But when I separated her, they didn’t know what to do and didn’t even go into the roosting area.
I’m not sure what to do. I don’t want them to get dirty sleeping on the board, and I don’t want to have to clean a bunch of crap out of the nesting box every day. I’ve tried setting them on their perches every night for about a month now, but this has not worked.
How can I encourage them to roost? My Mom thinks I should just let them sleep in the nesting box until they learn to perch, but like I said, cleaning crap out of the nest box every day would be a real hassle. Any advice is appreciated, and here are pictures of the roosting area and nest box.



*Disclaimer: I know this coop is pretty small. It is located in the garage, which is why it is not predator proofed. They only go in this coop for a small part of the day, I move them to a good sized run outdoors every morning and bring them back in at night. The run has a nesting area, food, water, and shade.

When I first put my pullets out (last year) they all slept in the nest box for awhile after a bit they learned to roost no help needed when I adopted my rooster he was picked on by the hens and would also sleep in the nest box he made his way up and soon started to sleep on the roost it may be because the other hen is there or for warmth you know so they can cuddle close! You could put cardboard in the bottom of the nest box so every morning you could just take it out and not have to scoop it all out!

Good luck!