Strange sleeping behavior

[Imp]

Quote:
Auracana07,
You might want to check if there is something else might be living in the coop. Last winter my hens were doing the same thing, afraid to go in and when they did go in wouldn't come down from there roosts. I thought for a couple weeks that they were just being weird, and not eating any of the food I was leaving for them. Finally I bumped the stand that holds the feeders and water and something small and pink ran out from behind it. I was so surprised I sprawled backwards and didn't see it too well. I think it was a baby rat. So now I take it seriously if the hens act strange, and move everything to check under and behind. I guess the chickens are smarter than me. Right after that I saw a rat living under the garden shed next to the coop. The cats took care of that. Good Cats!

 

[Barn Maid Ann]

One of our coops, with our first group of chickens, already had the nest boxes installed when we put the chickens in.
For the second batch, this year, we raised them as chicks. We used an extra stall in the barn. We were going to put the ones we kept in with the older chickens. The older girls just wanted to kill these little guys and I didn't have the heart to put them thru it. Besides we ended up keeping too many for that little doop. So we put nest boxes in the stall. No one had a problem. They immediately went into them.

Araucana07, have you put the same kind of nesting material in the nest boxes that the hens are used to? We use shavings with a bit of soft hay on top.

 

[auracana07]

You guys have really good ideas, but do you think it is possible that maybe it is too crouded in there with all the things. We have a lightbulb, food, water/water heater, and nesting box! They're getting really big too. Maybe they all can't fit on the perch.