yet another roost question

[whatjelly]

Our chicks are 6 or 7 weeks old now... The roost we put up is a 2 inch round dowel. It's only a couple feet off the floor now.

My thought was to leave it down low for now? When should we start moving it up? How high, and how often should we move it?

Also, we just put window in the coop and it's right behind the roost. Should I move it away from the window? Does the window matter?

And will the chicks figure out the roost on their own? Also, should it have been a flat one instead????

so many questions...

 

[elmo]

You're right: flat is better for chickens. Round is not the right thing. Many people use a 2" by 4" with the wide side up and the edges sanded down smooth for standard breed chickens to roost on. I use natural tree branches, but I pick ones that are about as wide as my bantams' feet.

The height of roosts is dependent on the breed of chicken, too. My bantams fly easily up to a 4 or 5 foot roost, but the standard breeds with heavier bodies would never manage something like that.

Many people put roosts in front of their coop windows; in the summer, if the windows open, the chickens enjoy the cooler breezes. However, in the winter, if your roost is in front of a window you won't probably want to leave the window open. Cold air blowing directly over chickens on their roost in the winter is a really bad idea.

 

[whatjelly]

Thank you! So much!

The breed is: Rhode Island Red...

... Another question...

We have 12... Is one 8 foot roost enough? Or should there be more?

 

[elmo]

Figure about a foot of roost width per bird. They won't use all that space once they're settled in, because they tend to jam up next to each other. However, there's usually jostling for position before they settle, so the extra width helps avoid more serious disagreements. It's always better to have more space than less.

Can you manage a wider roost? You can set up more than one roost, but I like to make them all at the same height to try to avoid birds fighting over the same space. Chickens like most birds prefer a higher to a lower roost.

 

[Spitman]

Mine are 8 weeks and are all using there roost and coming in on there own I use a 25 watt night light . and at dust they start rolling in and climbing up . My Roost is at 5' but I gave them a latter .

 

[aussieheelr]

We put in 1 8' board for the roost wide side up about 3 ft high BUT only the bottom of the pecking order use it. The rest of my girls set up on the trusses/rafters which are set up 2" side up like a house is done. So I've decided that they just kinda take what they can get and go where they want, go figure.

 

[Lollipop]

Rule of thumb for adult chickens minimum roost height is just high enough to make them flap at least once before landing. Softens the landing and helps prevent bumblefoot........Pop