Hi guys, this is my first post here. I am new to backyard chicken raising, but I'm on my first flock and everything is going well. There are 13 of them (a lot, I know, the company sent extras ). But they have a really big run and a 4'x8' sized coop, with plenty of food and fresh water during the day. They are almost 7 weeks old. My question is, at dusk they act very strange. They all crowd up against the fence door, and try to push through it. They can't, they're too big, but they all try none the less. I thought maybe they are trying to follow the light? They are located on the east side of the house and so maybe it looks lighter out in the backyard proper? Is this a thing? They also completely ignore the coop. There is a ramp but they have not figured out how to use it, and they're still pretty small for it. I still have to go out every evening and physically put them up in the coop. They would sleep outside squashed against the fence if I let them. They are also VERY noisy at dusk. They are virtually silent all during the day but when it starts to get dark they are LOUD. They settle down when I close them up in the coop. I'm worried my neighbors might not enjoy this... Is this normal? I'm more curious about the fence pile-on than anything else. Thanks so much!
Chickens hate change. It sounds as if you have recently put them in this pen and they still don't regard the coop as 'home'. If this is the case, they should soon learn how to get into the coop at night.
Mine are about thirteen weeks old and have done the same since I moved them into the coop. The sleep outside at night sometimes huddled in a pile by the fence or sometimes under the coop. They have finally started to venture up the ramp and into the coop some during the day but never at night. I've heard all the tricks to try and get them in but none have worked. I just let them do their own thing. Maybe with some of them checking the coop out now the rest will follow.
