Sick Chickens - Need to Catch - HOW????

[binders]

I need a newbie lesson on how to catch my chickens.

I think my chickens are sick and I need to catch them so that I can examine them each closely. They are not very tame. They will come near me but if I move they run away. I can corner them one by one and with a lot of stress on both our parts I can catch one and check it out, but as said it is very stressful for both of us. How do you catch your chickens?

 

[kuntrygirl]

You can wait until they go in to roost at night, lock them up and catch them.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I use a long-handled fishnet to catch mine if I really have to catch them during the day. But I agree with kuntrygirl in that it is a lot easier to catch them at night on the roost.

 

[cassidy22]

Take away their food for a day, and when you put food down in the morning, catch them!

Or wait till they roost at night, sleeping birds hardly move at all.

 

[binders]

Thanks for your suggestions!!!

I will try that. Our roost is hard to reach from the little door in the coop but I will see if I can get some of them tonight and maybe the others will be in reach tomorrow night. They don't like it when I look in on them when they are settled for the night. Does using a red light instead of a white light help?

 

[LiLRedCV]

I do this one of two ways... I do have a long-handled fish net to catch them up with, but you can still have to chase them around if they're wise to it.

I've found the easiest way is to cut them off from their feed and/or water inside the coop for several hours and then when roosting time comes, I open it back up for them to enter and they do so willingly (and hungrily!). They'll all enter about the same time frame at that point. I then shut them off from the outside. After they're in, I may pick them up directly or sometime's I wait until they settle down to roost before I pick them up to do what I need to do with them. If some are still being difficult to catch up after this, I'll use the net inside the coop...

 

[LiLRedCV]

Quote:
If you're girls are still just out of reach once they're roosting, use a long-handled fish net to snag them up. Using a red light instead of a white one can help. While the red light will keep them warm, the white one tricks them into thinking it's still sunlight out and can keep them active beyond the norm come roosting time.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

If they are in a coop you can grab their feet with one hand and under the belly with the other, there may be some squawking if they aren't that tame to begin with, lucky you they aren't roosting in a tree! (they can be blinded alittle with the flashlight too, that way they won't see you reaching)

 

[binders]

Quote:
I meant a right flashlight when I go to the coop. Sorry for the confussion. I know what I mean just not how to write it. LOL

My coop does not have electricity to it so I will be using a flashlight. My husband is an astronomer so he uses red flashlights when he is outside so I was wondering if that would help in not stirring the chickens up too much when I am trying to get them in the coop at night when they are roosting.

 

[Ole rooster]

You can get one of 90 degree military flashlights that have 3 or 4 different lens. Red is one of them. Any Army/Navy has um.