Some nights they go in, some nights they stay out

[3KillerBs]

Aw darn. I was having some feather picking issues when I didn’t have the extra roost in the run, so I’m concerned about removing them. I wonder if I were to remove just the higher level roost if that would help the situation.

If it's higher than the one in the coop that might work.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Aw darn. I was having some feather picking issues when I didn’t have the extra roost in the run, so I’m concerned about removing them. I wonder if I were to remove just the higher level roost if that would help the situation.

Try removing the highest limb or two from the one in the run, and see if that makes the coop a more attractive option.

 

[ChristinaBee]

Try removing the highest limb or two from the one in the run, and see if that makes the coop a more attractive option.

Ok thanks! I’ll give that a try.

 

[Dlepage]

Hello! I’m looking for some advice. I have 6 hens, all about 1.5 years old. I live in upstate NY and it has been a cold winter, often reaching negative numbers at night. Almost every night I have to put a few chickens inside the coop at night. How can I get them to all go inside? It’s always a different combination of who goes in and/or stays out. For a few months they all went in every night. But then when I put a tree roost in the run this issue started happening.

Beautiful coop but you may have a pecking order issue and the top chickens are not allowing the lower chickens in. How many chickens do you have. Can you make more room for them on the coop roost perhaps put a second row of perch higher than the first row so the top chickens can take the higher perch it’s just a guess I’m not an expert I just read a lot about keeping chickens and I have 4 chickens for the first time this year.