Straggler Hen

[Deepfriedbeauty]

My 3 ladies are about 11 weeks old and have been in the coop for a month now. I let them into the run a week and a half later. The 1st couple of nights I had to put them into the coop and lift them to the roost at sundown. The 3rd night I had a surprise. I saw no chickens in the run! I peeked into the coop and there were 2 birds on the roost. They had never ventured up on their own. I was so proud of them, but where was the fat Faverolle, Miss Raye? She was hunkered down under the coop ladder all comfy and alone. This has become the norm every night. She stays out all alone and she actually seems a bit fearful of the ladder. I've tried ladder lessons with raisins as bribery. No dice. Will she grow out of this or is she just not getting it?

 

[cackleberrycam]

Is it hard for her to get up to the coop?

 

[Deepfriedbeauty]

It must be. She has yet to venture in on her own. The others go right in and call to her. She just wanders around looking for them. I know her eyes are fine because every morning I go out with a handful of raisins and she gobbles them right out of my hand. I think she's scared of the ladder. When she leaves the coop, she flys down. The other two hop down the ladder rungs. Here is a pic of the ladder and door.

 

[Deepfriedbeauty]

There was one time she got really brave when I was cleaning the coop from the front door and she flew out into the human yard. I feverishly went to grab her and my small dog(chihuahua and corgi) thought she would help and grabbed poor Raye by her leg. Upon inspection she was unharmed, but pretty shaken up. This was before the run was complete so she had never been out there or on the ladder. Maybe it damaged her psychologically. Are there chicken shrinks out there?