Here in east coast Australia, we have been experiencing quite a heat wave. My days have been full of iced water and frozen grape duties and making sure of solid shade during the days. I got my two beautiful new hens ( 1 Lavender Orpington and 1 huge Gold Laced Wyandotte) on such a day and settled them into the big coop. They would be quarantined for a while and might even feel like making us breakfast any day soon.
The three 7 wk old chicks got the chicken tractor as I thought the big hens needed the more sturdy and well decked out nesting boxes and sleeping quarters.
So, when I realised that the new hens, who had been raised in an open-shed situation, had no idea and no intention of using a ramp, I tried a few things, but didn't worry too much as the weather was warm and, I would have loved to sleep in the safe, airy bottom floor of Buck-Buck-Buckingham Palace, myself.
However, the weather suddenly turned. We woke the next morning to chilling winds and, later, sweeping rain. The wind was like winter, coming off the snow somewhere! That evening, I tried to get them to find the upstairs boudoir, but all I was doing was upsetting them. I tried piling up litter under the ramp to make it less of a slope and we put non-slip tape on it as the only time they did get on there, as soon as they felt their feet slip, they jumped off. I put treats and grass in the doorway, but they could reach them from the ground (did I say they are large hens!) I ended up putting a solid crate in downstairs with lots of comfy bedding and they nestled in.
What a dilemma!
It was breaking my heart to think they were huggled-up to keep warm when a short walk away there was herbed comfy bedding, roosts and nesting boxes. It would be no mean feat to get them moved once they were asleep (they are both large hens and this was the first time I had tried moving a chicken while it was asleep and me with a bad back, too!) - through the temporary fencing, through the coop door, find them in the crate in the dark, hold one and back out of the coop and place them through the front drop-down door. The Orpington clucked like it was waking up but settled with a stroke once I had placed her in the sleeping area, luckily. The huge Wyandotte flapped wildly and squawked like I was a fox, come to carry her off, when I picked her out of the crate. She got her wings out of my hold and I thought it was going to turn ugly, but I managed to get her back under control and quickly move her to her sleeping quarters.
It probably all seems easy once you have chickens a while, but I was over the moon to get them out of the wind and comfy for what was left of the night.
This afternoon, I thought I would be doing the same again. At least I knew it was physically possible now. They began to settle in the crate. I opened the outer side of the upstairs room (drop-down door) and leaned my head in far enough that they could see my face. I talked to them through the ramp door, showed them that there was water, tapped the ramp and gave up.
When I later went out to move them, they were snuggled upstairs.
I raced to the house and told bemused hubby, "The hens are tucked in upstairs!" 
We laughed at my excessive jubilancy!
I had read an old post where this had gone on for days for someone, so I was a bit excited that once was enough for them to get the idea, especially because of the cold weather. Too easy!
The three 7 wk old chicks got the chicken tractor as I thought the big hens needed the more sturdy and well decked out nesting boxes and sleeping quarters.
So, when I realised that the new hens, who had been raised in an open-shed situation, had no idea and no intention of using a ramp, I tried a few things, but didn't worry too much as the weather was warm and, I would have loved to sleep in the safe, airy bottom floor of Buck-Buck-Buckingham Palace, myself.
However, the weather suddenly turned. We woke the next morning to chilling winds and, later, sweeping rain. The wind was like winter, coming off the snow somewhere! That evening, I tried to get them to find the upstairs boudoir, but all I was doing was upsetting them. I tried piling up litter under the ramp to make it less of a slope and we put non-slip tape on it as the only time they did get on there, as soon as they felt their feet slip, they jumped off. I put treats and grass in the doorway, but they could reach them from the ground (did I say they are large hens!) I ended up putting a solid crate in downstairs with lots of comfy bedding and they nestled in.
What a dilemma!
It was breaking my heart to think they were huggled-up to keep warm when a short walk away there was herbed comfy bedding, roosts and nesting boxes. It would be no mean feat to get them moved once they were asleep (they are both large hens and this was the first time I had tried moving a chicken while it was asleep and me with a bad back, too!) - through the temporary fencing, through the coop door, find them in the crate in the dark, hold one and back out of the coop and place them through the front drop-down door. The Orpington clucked like it was waking up but settled with a stroke once I had placed her in the sleeping area, luckily. The huge Wyandotte flapped wildly and squawked like I was a fox, come to carry her off, when I picked her out of the crate. She got her wings out of my hold and I thought it was going to turn ugly, but I managed to get her back under control and quickly move her to her sleeping quarters.
It probably all seems easy once you have chickens a while, but I was over the moon to get them out of the wind and comfy for what was left of the night.
This afternoon, I thought I would be doing the same again. At least I knew it was physically possible now. They began to settle in the crate. I opened the outer side of the upstairs room (drop-down door) and leaned my head in far enough that they could see my face. I talked to them through the ramp door, showed them that there was water, tapped the ramp and gave up.
When I later went out to move them, they were snuggled upstairs.
I raced to the house and told bemused hubby, "The hens are tucked in upstairs!" We laughed at my excessive jubilancy!I had read an old post where this had gone on for days for someone, so I was a bit excited that once was enough for them to get the idea, especially because of the cold weather. Too easy!
Last edited:
