What is your bedtime routine?

[Rachel'sFlock]

Around 8:45pm (this time of year) I remove the food and water from the run, and clean and refill them, then put them back into the coop. I also refill and clean the indoor feeder and waterer (I have integrated 2 small flocks).
Then, I go back out to the run and "herd" the remaining chooks into the coop by saying, "It's time for bed", around 50 times.
The 8 "little kids" (13 weeks, today) put themselves to bed, but the year-old biddies would stay out all night, I think. They spent the first year of their life indoors, in the coop, so they don't waste one second of their run time, now they have one. It is just a week old.
Then I go back inside and secure the coop/run door and tell everyone to have good sleep and to be sweet (there are 5 teenage cockerals in there, and they are little daemons).
Deep sigh of contented relief, and it is inside for a glass of wine for Mum.
Another day in the life of the chooks complete.

Cool thread!

 

[littlestars17]

Today is my first day freeranging my 10 and 12 week old chicks so will see with them, but older girls put themselves to bed..we count heinys close the door and tell them be nice

 

[vjbakke]

We have led rope light in the coop that comes on at 7:30 and stays on untill 10:30. The girls go in about 9 or so depending on how dark it is. I got out and " tuck them in" shut the door around 10 or so. Then their light comes on for a while in the morning, open the coop door to their closed run. The girls picked up on this routine very quickly. They are 9 and 10 wks old.

 

[terrilhb]

I go out at dusk and shut the doors to the coop and than lock up the people doors into the run. Than around 9:30 or 10:00 I go out and shut lights off. Go to each coop and shine a flashlight so any stragglers can get up on the roosts and count them. I than lock the doors with padlocks and put cement blocks against all doors to make sure they are even safer. Than I go put my goats up and tell everyone goodnight. And everyone laughs at me for it. But I don't care cause I know they are safe.

 

[AnaD]

Between 4-6pm I let them out to free range the yard. At 9pm I close the coop door. My chickens put themselves to bed.

 

[CaroleW]

After I get home from work I let a flock of 3 free range and move their chicken tractor over a bit (a couple of times a week) while they are out and change water.

The flock of 4 farm pullets in the main run I feed and give some weeds and greens since they aren't trustworthy enough to free range yet. And also because I am working on slowly integrating the two flocks over the next month or so.

Then I feed the 3 free rangers in their tractor and they come eat inside the tractor. This is KEY so I don't have to herd them!

Then everyone starts to go into their respective roosts about 30 minutes before dark. I go inside, then in a couple of hours right before I go to bed I take the dog out and we walk the perimeter and count heads as we pass by each coop.

The enclosed run and tractor are relatively secure as I am in an suburban backyard with a 6' high block wall with few real predators so I don't close the door to the run area. So they can go out as early as they want in the morning without waiting on me.

 

[kara_leigh]

I have three sets of chicks at the moment. The oldest ones (12wks) sleep on the covered front porch in a mini coop. In the evening I am usually sitting on the porch on my computer. They start hanging around their coop at 7:30, but don't start going in until 8:30 or so. Two of my boys like to sit on top of the coop rather than go in, and occasionally I have a dawdler, so I go over and tell them "Time for bed, come on, go to bed!" and herd them until they go in on their own. Then I shut their door and tell them "Good night chickies! See you in the morning!"

My next chicks are 6wks old. They free range with the 12wk olds, but still sleep in a brooder in my husband's shop. Everyone free ranges together peacefully now, but I still don't trust the older ones not to pick on them if I were to put them in the coop. I'm waiting until they get a bit bigger. Anyway... They tend to range a lot longer than the older ones do. They start chirping loud and merge into a tighter group when they are ready to be put away, so then I go out and gather them up in a box to take them over to their brooder. I put them all in and tell them the same thing as I do the oldest ones.

My youngest ones are 4 weeks old and they stay in a chicken tractor during the day. At night they also sleep in a brooder in my husband's shop. I put them away at the same time I put the 6wk olds away. Same goes for them as far as their routine. Then the light goes off and we go back to the house.

I definitely put my chickies to bed.

 

[carladababe]

My chicks are now almost 15 weeks old and they put themselves to bed. They start to leave the run into the coop around dark time, and proceed to make banging noises that I can only assume is they're competing for the best roosting space. While the temperature is warm I don't close off the coop from the run, and by first light they are already out in the run ready for another day. They're good girls.

 

[ThinkingChickens]

Once it gets dark, currently 8:30pm, I go out and close the pop door on the Go. Then I grab the water bowl and shut the run. I clean the water bowl and set it outside to dry for the morning. I'd say I can get away with about five minutes of chicken keeping time a day with 20 minutes on the weekend to clean. However, I like going and hanging out with the girls while I have a glass of wine or read. They are entertaining and come running to see me.

 

[kuntrygirl]

Evening/Bedtime Routine
5:30 PM
* Arrive home from work, Log on to BYC, change into work clothes
5:45 PM - 8:45 PM
*Open up the chicken yard where they free range and let the animals free range into the "human yard".
*Walk around 2 acres to make sure that there are no noticeable problems (no dead bodies, injuries, etc.) from that day.
*Turn on the water to start changing out that day's water and refill with fresh water. Refill about 50 waterers in different locations (chickens, ducks, rabbits, sheep, etc.)
*Fill up 35 feeders in different locations with different types of feed (Starter/grower, Gamebirds starter, Lay Pellets, Special Grain Feed, Sheep Feed, Goat Feed, Rabbit Feed, Cat food). This includes going back and forth to the feeding stall and filling up 5 gallon buckets and returning to each individual feeder.
*Clean brooders where mom and babies are. Make sure all poop is clean and new bedding is replaced.
*Check on broody hens in different locations.
*Dump out kiddie pool water in 3 pools and refill with fresh water.
*Pick eggs. Have to check about 22 nesting boxes and walk around to see if someone decided not to lay in the nesting box for that day.
*Take periodic 5 minute breaks to go inside to read posts on BYC.

8:45 PM - 9:30 PM
*Check email, text messages and website for egg orders.
*Prepare egg order for next day.
*Read posts on BYC

9:30 PM
*Go back outside, close and secure and lock 35 housing structures (brooders, stalls, cages, dog kennels/chicken houses) and do a head count of all animals.

10:00 PM
*Come inside and take shower and put on Pajamas.
*Check my pulse to make sure that I'm not dead from all of the above chores.
*Watch weather report for next day.

10:30 PM - 11:30 PM
*Read posts on BYC

11:30 PM
BED TIME!