Young chickens not going in at night

[PippinTheChicken]

NOTE: I CANNOT SEPARATE ANY BIRDS OR GET A LARGER COOP

My 3 silkie chicks moved in with my 2 older hens 7 weeks ago. They have been going in and out of the coop by themselves and they have integrated well.
Recently, one of my hens hatched 3 polish chicks. She is still living with the rest of the flock since I can't get another coop for them. The flock doesnt annoy her or the chicks.

Recently, my 3 silkies haven't been going into the coop at night. They all huddle outside.
The coop is large enough for all of them so I don't understand why they suddenly stopped going in.
Are they scared of my hen? They act fine together when they are in the run.

I might be going on holiday soon so I need them to go in at night!

Will it hurt them if they don't go in the coop for the night? I'm not too worried about predators since they life in a fully enclosed run.

 

[OreoH]

Maybe you could try picking them up and physically putting them inside every night? It might help emphasize that that is where they need to sleep. Do you have to lock up and unlock the coop every day? I don't think it's a very big deal whether or not they go in, but it is an extra layer of protection.

 

[PippinTheChicken]

Maybe you could try picking them up and physically putting them inside every night? It might help emphasize that that is where they need to sleep. Do you have to lock up and unlock the coop every day? I don't think it's a very big deal whether or not they go in, but it is an extra layer of protection.

I have been pushing them in the door every night.
I have an auto-door that shuts at 10pm and opens at 6am but I go to make sure they are in at night.
Do I not need to worry about them staying out?
I got the auto door so that when I go on holiday, my neighbor doesn't have to wake up early to open them up

 

[Farmgirl1878]

I have been pushing them in the door every night.
I have an auto-door that shuts at 10pm and opens at 6am but I go to make sure they are in at night.
Do I not need to worry about them staying out?
I got the auto door so that when I go on holiday, my neighbor doesn't have to wake up early to open them up

I think it depends on where you live and what your setup is like as to whether they can safely sleep outside all night. Pics would help as would a description of your weather recently.

How long will you be away? And will your neighbors be willing to check on the girls and move them if necessary? (I’m lucky, my neighbors all have chickens too, so they wouldn’t have any qualms about picking up stragglers and moving them into the coop!)

If they were sleeping inside before, but not now, then it could be that the new Momma is getting aggressive and they’re afraid of her. (My middle of the pecking order Speckled Sussex, Dottie, who is raising five Brahma chicks, has been terrorizing the alpha hen for the last few days - for no apparent reason.) Even though our run is secure, I wouldn‘t let my girls sleep outside the coop all night.

 

[PippinTheChicken]

I think it depends on where you live and what your setup is like as to whether they can safely sleep outside all night. Pics would help as would a description of your weather recently.

How long will you be away? And will your neighbors be willing to check on the girls and move them if necessary? (I’m lucky, my neighbors all have chickens too, so they wouldn’t have any qualms about picking up stragglers and moving them into the coop!)

If they were sleeping inside before, but not now, then it could be that the new Momma is getting aggressive and they’re afraid of her. (My middle of the pecking order Speckled Sussex, Dottie, who is raising five Brahma chicks, has been terrorizing the alpha hen for the last few days - for no apparent reason.) Even though our run is secure, I wouldn‘t let my girls sleep outside the coop all night.

Recently it has been quite warm and sunny. Maybe around 20-30°C during the day and around 12-20°C at night.
Not sure if my neighbor would/n't be willing to put them in. That's why I really want to correct this behavior. They used to own chickens though.
I'm not sure if my hen is being aggressive to them or not. She is quite a docile hen.

 

[PippinTheChicken]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-coop-run.1469740/#post-24484256
Here's my setup.
I've Changed a few things since the newest chicks but it's mostly the same

 

[OreoH]

I have been pushing them in the door every night.
I have an auto-door that shuts at 10pm and opens at 6am but I go to make sure they are in at night.
Do I not need to worry about them staying out?
I got the auto door so that when I go on holiday, my neighbor doesn't have to wake up early to open them up

I don't think letting them stay out is very dangerous, but you want to be very sure that your run is entirely safe. If your neighbor is unwilling to put them in, you might just want to check for gaps or holes in the run before you leave. The temperature sounds fine to me. Have they successfully stayed overnight in the run before?

 

[Ridgerunner]

NOTE: I CANNOT SEPARATE ANY BIRDS OR GET A LARGER COOP

Recently, my 3 silkies haven't been going into the coop at night. They all huddle outside.
The coop is large enough for all of them so I don't understand why they suddenly stopped going in.

Not sure how old those Silkie chicks are but I don't think that is important. Of more interest is what the coop looks like, where the Silkie chicks were sleeping inside, and where the broody hen and chicks are sleeping now.

Without knowing much about your set-up my guess is that the broody with chicks is now sleeping close enough to where the Silkies were that they are no longer comfortable sleeping inside. So when they moved they chose to sleep outside.

Will it hurt them if they don't go in the coop for the night?

From a weather viewpoint, no. They will be fine sleeping outside. The risk is in predators. If you are comfortable your run is predator proof I don't see a problem. I don't know where you are located so I don't know what particular predators you have so that can only be your decision.

If you continue locking them in the coop at night they should eventually get the message, though if it is tight that may take a while. I don't know what else you can do.

 

[Farmgirl1878]

Recently it has been quite warm and sunny. Maybe around 20-30°C during the day and around 12-20°C at night.
Not sure if my neighbor would/n't be willing to put them in. That's why I really want to correct this behavior. They used to own chickens though.
I'm not sure if my hen is being aggressive to them or not. She is quite a docile hen.

Dottie was too until she became “Hormonal Helen!” Once she adopted those chicks, she became very protective. Most of the time, everyone gets along and the Littles are integrated into the rest of the flock, even at the food dishes and water stations, but every so often, Mom feels like someone is paying too much attention to the kids and freaks out.

Maybe your silkies are too warm at night in the coop?

 

[PippinTheChicken]