Ok, so our coop is built into a barn stall. The pop door opens to the outside of the barn into a little 'run' I set up with polystrand electric fence. They walk or fly straight through or over it pretty much anytime they want.. Like, 0% effective.
I put it up with the hopes that they'd sorta use the honor system and scratch around inside the fence, but no... At this point, it's only up to keep the goats away from the pop door because I don't want them walking the ramp, nor sticking their heads in the coop, and especially not eating the cracked corn we throw for scratch (cracked corn has about a 1:4, Ca
ratio, which is really bad for goats...especially bucklings, bucks, and wethers...).
Anyway...when we open the pop door, a handful of chickens come right out and start walking around. The rest apparently want NOTHING to do with the outside world. That's issue #1...chickens won't come out!
Now, those that do go out usually wind up outside the fence at some point.. Most stick close enough to find their way back to the pop door, but a few will wander off into the weeds or make their way into the barn and ramble around..
That's all fine, I don't really care...but when it gets dark, the ramblers tend to just find a cubby hole somewhere and lay down!! It's like they don't even bother trying to find the pop door so they can roost with the rest of the flock!
Just last night, for instance, one was roaming around in the barn about dark, so I opened a coop window hoping she'd hop in. Nope.. She looked in, saw the other chickens, then sauntered off and scooched under the coop and laid down.
I was pretty much like...well, whatever...so I left her there.
We have a big LGD on the premises so nothing screws around inside that barn...I know she's safe...it's just annoying.
Part of me wants all the chickens to go out, but another part worries that if and when they all do go out, a bunch will go rogue, never to be seen again..
Is this fairly normal? Is it too much to expect that every single chicken will get in line and do a little chicken conga back to the coop each and every night? I mean...isn't that what chickens are supposed to do!?!??
Sorry...this ended up being half rant/half question..
I put it up with the hopes that they'd sorta use the honor system and scratch around inside the fence, but no... At this point, it's only up to keep the goats away from the pop door because I don't want them walking the ramp, nor sticking their heads in the coop, and especially not eating the cracked corn we throw for scratch (cracked corn has about a 1:4, Ca
ratio, which is really bad for goats...especially bucklings, bucks, and wethers...). Anyway...when we open the pop door, a handful of chickens come right out and start walking around. The rest apparently want NOTHING to do with the outside world. That's issue #1...chickens won't come out!
Now, those that do go out usually wind up outside the fence at some point.. Most stick close enough to find their way back to the pop door, but a few will wander off into the weeds or make their way into the barn and ramble around..
That's all fine, I don't really care...but when it gets dark, the ramblers tend to just find a cubby hole somewhere and lay down!! It's like they don't even bother trying to find the pop door so they can roost with the rest of the flock!
Just last night, for instance, one was roaming around in the barn about dark, so I opened a coop window hoping she'd hop in. Nope.. She looked in, saw the other chickens, then sauntered off and scooched under the coop and laid down.
I was pretty much like...well, whatever...so I left her there.
We have a big LGD on the premises so nothing screws around inside that barn...I know she's safe...it's just annoying.
Part of me wants all the chickens to go out, but another part worries that if and when they all do go out, a bunch will go rogue, never to be seen again..
Is this fairly normal? Is it too much to expect that every single chicken will get in line and do a little chicken conga back to the coop each and every night? I mean...isn't that what chickens are supposed to do!?!??
Sorry...this ended up being half rant/half question..
