What time do you let your chickens out?

[Tomo ov gy]

Wow thanks. I heard they need 14/16 hours daylight to lay eggs

 

[AllynTal]

Wow thanks. I heard they need 14/16 hours daylight to lay eggs

They do.

 

[ChickenMammX4]

The pop door is auto set to open around 7am this time of year, closes around 10 pm.

 

[TominWa]

Since I'm already up, I open the door around 5-6 am. I love watching them come out. I have the early birds who march out at first light, and I have the sleepy heads who meander about as if they need a cup of coffee to get going. Then there are the diehards who keep their head tucked under their wing until they are the last in the coop.

What is really entertaining is how they act once they get moving. I have the martial arts experts who dodge and dart about like little ninjas. The long distance runners warm up with few laps around the chicken yard. Morse immediately pecks out her secret code. Then there are the super chickens who stand up straight and flap their wings until the grass bends over. One or two practice chicken yoga with eyes half closed. Then as soon as the sun hits the yard its sun bathing time, and they all collapse in total harmony.

I like the looks I get when I go in the coup in the morning. I'm up at 5 and about 6 I start marching around the house telling the wife to get up lazy head, the dog pretending to be asleep.,,,and then the coup. I don't go in before 6 as they get upset when I disturb them too early. 8 little bundles of joy telling me to "close the door". Lazy little chickens. Then they start stretching and act indignant if I don't have scratch in my hand. "go get some and maybe we will jump down" they grunt at me. So I get some. After we have our little morning talk, I open the run door and its just like you describe. The acrobat, the one who can barely move, one who jumps on me and tried to climb in my bathrobe to go back to sleep. Who would have thought each and every chicken would have such a unique personality.

 

[Dawnclucks22]

I open my coop whenever it's convenient for me in the morning, but they'll start getting loud to let you know they want out after about 6:30 for me.

 

[Cindy in PA]

My door opens at sunrise & the chicks (9weeks) usually burst out as a group. I've had my auto door 2 years & love it! Prior to that, at this time of year it was probably 7 before I got out there. They have their food & water in the coop, so it was no big deal. It's nice they get to enjoy all the day light time now.

 

[thewatsonfarm]

My flock DEMANDS to be let out of the coop at around 5:30 am lately. Ugh!!! They just start screaming, which embarrasses me because I hate to have them disturbing the neighbors (we live in suburbia and I don't want to have a problem). So I bolt out of bed when I hear them & I run out to let them out.

Really, I think they are very spoiled, and maybe I have accidentally been an enabler. They have plenty of room in the run & could easily spend their whole day in there. But they want to be let out to free-range in the yard.

I sure wish I could un-do this obnoxious behavior. Any ideas?

 

[AllynTal]

My flock DEMANDS to be let out of the coop at around 5:30 am lately. Ugh!!! They just start screaming, which embarrasses me because I hate to have them disturbing the neighbors (we live in suburbia and I don't want to have a problem). So I bolt out of bed when I hear them & I run out to let them out.

Really, I think they are very spoiled, and maybe I have accidentally been an enabler. They have plenty of room in the run & could easily spend their whole day in there. But they want to be let out to free-range in the yard.

I sure wish I could un-do this obnoxious behavior. Any ideas?

It sounds like they have you very well trained.

 

[thewatsonfarm]

It sounds like they have you very well trained.

Yes, they have me VERY well trained. I usually bolt out of bed somewhere between 6 am to 6:15 am, as soon as they start screaming. During the week it isn't so bad because I need to get up for work anyhow, but on the weekends I find myself muttering mean things about making them into soup.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I leave for work at 7 so I usually go and let the guineas out of the run, put down food, and then open the coop doors around 530 - 6. On the weekends some nights I will leave the coop doors open just so I can sleep in a little later and not feel bad about it, but only if I know I will be able to free range them as soon as I get up since the guineas will be in the run with them and that gets old fast. My run is extremely predator proof and my coops even more so, but I still like to close the coops at night 90% of the time, for their security and so I can let the guineas out of the run without the chickens going out too, since they don't get to free range until one of us is home from work. I make the guineas sleep in there, though, on a 6' roost, to protect them from the foxes and owls. I would let them sleep in the coops but they are real a-holes to the chickens.