What is your bedtime routine?

[jwg423]

My chickens all go in at dark all I would have to do is close the door, but we have EE's that want to stay up all night and chase the bugs that come out, so it takes 2 of us (usually my oldest son and I) to herd the chickens in... It's a good workout before bedtime!

 

[silverback]

I go out with a glass of wine and sit in the old glider that we put in the run. Sometimes the neighbors join us. The 3 girls come up from the woods (fenced) into the run and then they do their ritual of coming up to us, (sometimes one jumps up on my lap), they poke at the grit, they poke at the oyster shell they wander a little, each has a drink of water and then they march up their ramp one by one to roost in their coop. It is really very cute. One of the highlights of the day.....doesn't take much to entertain us.

We just got 3 more - 8 week old chicks - and are working on getting a routine for them. They have started roosting (they have a separate coop and run since the big girls are not being very welcoming) but don't have any special rituals yet.

The best bit (after the march up the ramp) is seeing the little humps on the perch and saying "goodnight girls".


Thanks for the thread!

S.

 

[a123andpoof]

what I do it go down fill my silkies waterer, and every other night the big girls waterer. Then if they are not all in I will put them in. Now if there is a really good show on during a commercial I run down and fill waterers, come back in on next commercial go see if girls are in. If they are I close them up. And sometimes I fill the feeder.

 

[Tanichca]

Brush teeth, drink four glasses of water, get dressed, drink another two glasses of water, lay down, mess with my hair, get up, turn on fan, lay back down, mess with hair, sleep.
Chicks take care of themselves, we live in a place with zero predators and they all stay in the coop.

 

[33yardbirds]

Drop the chicken door, close the screen door and exterior door, just all matter of fact, no ceremony.

 

[shend]

I'm still fairly new at this, but I've discovered as the days get longer that the 4 girls go into the coop around 9pm. Usually I can go right to the chicken door and lock it down without them running out to meet me. They are used to those treats, for sure!

Then its in the people door, freshen the water and talk to them as they are settling in. Interestingly, its the only time I can pet the 2 Easter Eggers. They won't let me get them during the day, but at bedtime, they stand there and trill and let me pet their heads.

My ma, who lives next door still thinks its weird that I talk to them at all!

 

[greenSearcher]

Lock the run down, secure the pop door and tell them all "sleep good" for the yellow coop, the first to bed, then catch and put the newbies to the red coop to bed, if they are running in and out the pop door-same sequence as the yellow coop. Then go to the blue coop w/ the Delawares and Naked Necks and secure the run door, then prompt, scold and finally take the dowel and tap legs to get them out of the door way so everyone can get in the coop. The first 3 or 4 in will lay in the door, blocking the way so there will be a queue up the ramp waiting to get in. Finally get the newbies to this coop and put them in-they won't go in early nor jostle for a way in. Anyway, after everyone is in secure the pop-door and tell them to be good. If not for the screwballs in the blue coop, it would be fasten things down, and good night. Speaking of which, the blue coop is calling...

 

[stilldeb]

Everybody heads in to bed about 8:15 in our two coops. All except Hallie, a black Silkie, who is my 'dawdler'. She is always last. She goes in and comes back out several times. So I watch and see when Hallie has gone to bed, then close the pop doors, pick up the feeders to help keep critters away and refill them for in the morning, and same with the waterers to wash them and refill them, pat on the coops and say 'nite, nite chickens' and usually get a few clucks in response, make sure the gates on their runs are secure and we are done for the night.

My "peepers" (3 week old Sultan babies) are already asleep in the house by then in the laundry room, so I just look in on them one more time and close the door.

deb g

 

[Ruth Ann]

Well I must say I feel better about my chicken bedtime after reading this....LOL
We have finally gotten the new girls (15 weeks old) living with the old girls (1 year olds)
without so much scuffling and squabbling.
Each night we check the food and water, rake the holes (craters) and get those leveled back out.
Then I sometimes sit back and watch for them to go in coop.
The little girls go first, get in big girls spot...get run off...and then they move to their side.
Big girls get where they want and the little ones scuffle about.
I stand at the door and talk to them...
never thought I would hear myself telling a chicken to hush...and don't make me come back in there!! LOL
After most of the chat is done I lock the door...and go in my house...but I do tell them goodnight and not to fuss

 

[off-grid hen]

My chickens put themselves to bed and always have, I'm lucky I guess. I do like to watch their routine, though. I park my chair in the far end of the run. When the light starts to fade, one or two walk into the coop. They look around a little and when the light is right, they start cheeping loudly. It's almost like the distress peep, but slightly different pitch. I think they are calling the others to bed. A few more hop into the coop and take up the cheeping. A few more, then a few more, until everyone is in. By the time most of them are in and they are calling for the last 3 stragglers, it's very loud! They all find their preferred roosting spots- but about six are still huddling in the high corner on the floor. But every night the pile in the corner gets smaller as they learn to roost. A few try to fly up into the windows (the leghorns of course) but then give up after a few minutes and find a different spot. They do this all while cheeping loudly! Once the get quiet, I close the door and say, "good night, sleep tight, don't let the raccoons bite. Love you ladies, and you too roo.". Then I close the dead bolt to the coop and set the carabiner clip into place and flip it upside down. Then I do the same thing to door on the run.