What does the perfect roost look like?

[Granolamom]

I've read a couple of posts about roost size and shape, and I'm beginning to suspect that mine is not the best. My chicks are anywhere between 5 and 7 months old, and the roost they're on at night is about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, maybe less. I've always thought that it should be like a tree branch, so that they can curl their feet around it, but possibly I'm totally wrong about that? Since it gets cold at night now, should I switch it to something they can sit on, like a 2x4, so that their feet are resting under the down?

 

[redoak]

A 2x4 with the wide side up makes a good roost for cold climates. Wide enough so they sit on their feet and help keep them warm.

 

[Chicken Woman]

I have a 2 by 4 because I have seen on so many other posts that is what most people have. I have also been told to round the edges.

 

[patandchickens]

Well, they don't really hang onto a perch by curling/gripping their toes around it the way most birds do. So there is no real virtue in narrowness. Most people prefer either a 2x4, making sure the corners are kinda rounded off a bit, or a fairly large diameter treebranch (like 4-5" or so) with the bark removed.

Honestly I think it's mostly a matter of comfort, in Georgia... it is not like you're likely to be courting frostbitten toes that often

(In colder climates, having a nice WIDE roost allows their toe tips to be tucked amongst their tummy feathers at night, styaing warmer)

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[momofdrew]

my birds dont roost on a roost...they cuddle together in the corner of the nesting area...and nest on the floor...we do have roosts in the coop and run but they hardly ever use them...

 

[ametauss]

Hummmm, I just installed my new roost and I put the 2x4 with the 2" up not the 4".... must have missed that part.... DH may kill me if I ask him to turn it.... I've made some changes to design that were not "smart" while he was building and he's quite frustrated with me....

Do you think it would be okay if I leave the thin side up???

 

[TexasVet]

My roost has 2x4's in both directions... one with the 2" side up and one with the 4" side up. My chickens don't show a preference for either one, so I'd leave yours the way they are. I also have a thin 1x1" board they can roost on, and it's popular too.

Oh... my chickens are all full size, ranging from 2 months/1/2 a pound to over 2 years/7 lbs.

Kathy in Texas

 

[speckledhen]

Quote:
Depends on the size of your chickens' feet. My Orpingtons have big feet and a 2" side would never work. In fact, my Blue Orp rooster's feet, from back toe to end the longest toe in front, are 5" wide! He'd have to have a 4" surface. Heck, I made him a roost shelf instead.

 

[omelette'smom]

My birds are random! some like the two by, some sleep IN the nest boxes-even one of the roosters (the big goof barley fits), some on top of the hay bail, some on top of the nest boxes, Cheep-Cheep likes the top of the door frame in the run divider, top of the feeder buckets (YUCK)! I tarped the run for the winter and they now treat it as one HUGE coop and just hang out mostly in pairs wherever! I have two perches 8ft long that they DON'T use at night, only in the day! WEIRD!

 

[speckledhen]

Oh, in case you didn't know, a commercial 2x4 is NOT actually 2" x 4". They are only about 1 3/4 x 3 3/4.