Silkies will not go into their house.

[Rootie]

Hello all. I have two silkies in a pin by themselves. They have a nice hen house they refuse to use at night. I've modified the ladder for them to comfortably walk up and down in return my female silkie will walk up it and lay her eggs in the mid day. That leads me to believe it's not an access problem as they access their house during the day. I've had to put them in the house the last week at night. I only have these two in this pin. What am I doing wrong

 

[sourland]

How long have they been in this pen ? Silkies are not the barnyard valedictorians.

 

[Rootie]

A couple of weeks.

 

[drumstick diva]

Now, now Sourland, silkies have big crests and beards that obscure their sight. When their crests and beards are trimmed back, their IQ makes a mighty leap(for silkies anyway)

They generally like to pile up in a corner on the floor. To each his own! Of course IF these are hatchery silkies with no beard or crest, maybe Sour is right.

You could also try a light on timer,so their house will not be so dark - once they are settled where you want them, the light would go out.

 

[Pork Pie]

Hi and welcome to BYC - you have some great advice already so I'll just say hello!

All the best
CT

 

[N F C]

Thanks for joining us!

 

[redsoxs]

Hello from Kansas and ! Pleased you joined our community!

 

[Teila]

G’Day from down under Rootie

Welcome!

I am basically just echoing what others have said but yep, Silkies usually like to sleep in a pile in a nest box or on the floor, they will, however, also use a low roost.

I read on BYC just the other day that chickens in a new environment are not used to judging bed time. While it is still light enough outside, when it starts to get dark outside and time to sleep, their coop is already too dark to see in. As Diva has suggested, some coop lighting until they get settled into a routine might help.

I hope you enjoy being a BYC member. There are lots of friendly and very helpful folks here so not only is it overflowing with useful information it is also a great place to make friends and have some fun. Unlike non chicken loving friends, family and colleagues, BYC’ers never tire of stories or pictures that feature our feathered and non feathered friends

 

[henny1129]

Hello and ! I hope you enjoy BYC just as much as the rest of us do! You've been given some great advice so far, I hope your stubborn little Silkies will start going in the coop soon.

 

[Rootie]

Thank you all for your advice I've read some awesome advice on this site.