Should I put the brooder plate/heater back in the coop at night?

[saysfaa]

...

I'd sure love to know how to do that! ...

Pool noodles to extend the length of your arms and be very visible. Then find the balance point between where they will move away from it and where they don't. Go slow. Slower. Still slower. Stop as often as needed. Give them time to drift rather than chase them. Move the pool noodles slowly if at all as you walk with them.

It will get better as you learn to read how ready the chickens are to move at all and/or panic. And as they learn. Eventually, you can move them at a chicken stroll pace.

If they panic, start over, further away and slower.

And/or wait until later in the evening, when they are ready to go to roost amyway.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'd sure love to know how to do that! I try luring then along with food, meal worms, their regular food, scratch grains. Today it was pomegranate and the first guava of the season. They are interested, but will only follow a few steps until they get distracted my all the other things in the yard they don't normally have access to.

I'd start inside the run, to avoid outside distractions. Also to add value to the treat, 1) pick something they like (i.e. scratch) and 2) ONLY hand it out when they're being trained, and then subsequently once they're out and you want them back. You want them to really value the treat above all else.

As you hand out treats, use a sound cue to associate with it. It can be simple as the treat rattling around inside a can, or a verbal noise (most of us do something simple, like a "Chick chick chick" call). Give the cue, distribute treat.

I'd do that a couple times a day at first and then you'll probably find that some of the birds will start running to you at hearing the sound. You can then extend the time between cue and treat and they should still come, as long as you are consistent with rewarding the behavior.

 

[SoCal Chicken Mama]

Ok, so I took everyone's advice, no heater, and I did put them back on starter/grower feed with a spice sized bowl of black soldier fly larvae and another spice sized bowl of scratch gains on the side, which all of them completely devoured. Was about to do the same this morning when I let them out of their sleeping place, when I peeked into the nest box and saw a teeny tiny brown egg, still warm! I think it was the Rhode Island Red. I saw her squat yesterday, and she seemed very interested in the nest boxes when I put them to bed last night. I did put them out in the pasture tractor all day the last two days because it was beautiful and sunny, but not at all hot. Thank you for all your training tips, I will certainly try all of them! I noticed their combs were a lot redder this week. Up until now they have been sort of pinkish. So back on layer feed they go. This morning they were absolutely fighting over the nest boxes! Each one couldn't wait to go try the new thing! Thank you so much. 23 1/2 weeks. Shwew! (Actually probably 24, I bought them on a Friday, but the Feed Store girl said they were probably hatched on Tuesday. The white ones are store bought.

 

[FrostRanger]

30-40F is still sweatshirt and jean weather for me. A chicken has a down puffer jacket that they wear 24/7 they will be more than warm enough without any heat.

Nah, for me that's t-shirt weather. It was that cold this morning and I rode my bike to work in a t-shirt and shorts and got an iced coffee on the way there. Most of my birds are molting and not a complaint out of them. I wouldn't start worrying until it gets to like -10 or -20. 30 is nothing to them

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Nah, for me that's t-shirt weather. It was that cold this morning and I rode my bike to work in a t-shirt and shorts and got an iced coffee on the way there. Most of my birds are molting and not a complaint out of them. I wouldn't start worrying until it gets to like -10 or -20. 30 is nothing to them

Haha well where I live it’s almost always at least 10-20mph winds on what we consider not windy days and in the fall/winter gusts up to 40-50mph are expected almost daily so it feels much colder. Still I agree 30 is not cold for a chicken and I don’t worry until it gets subzero.