not going into the coop at night
not going into the coop at nighthi, i have four chickens and apart from putting them in their house on the first night, they have all gone away themselves before dark. tonight all four were sitting on the perch in their run even though it was pitch black so i had to go in and put them in their house. does anyone know why?
Re: not going into the coop at nightIt could well be red mite - I know that often people say that this stops their hens from going into the coop. If you go in in the morning with a white tissue/cloth and wipe it around the ends of the perches, or in any nooks and crannies of the coop, then you might find evidence of them. They feed on the blood of the birds overnight, so will be redder in colour - they're grey the rest of the time.
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder..." Thoreau.
Re: not going into the coop at nightwe only did a complete clean of the coop on saturday and sprayed with poultry shield.
Re: not going into the coop at nighthmmm - I don't know then. Worth checking for red mite in the morning though. I've never had them (hoping I don't jinx myself by saying that!) but I know that they can be a nuisance to get rid of - and some members here have really struggled in the past.
"Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder..." Thoreau.
Re: not going into the coop at nightI agree LBF red mite is the main cause of chickens not wanting to roost, it has happened to me and I had just cleaned, scrubbing brush, diluted Jeyes fluid, vaseline on the perches, ends of perches important, mite powder on hens aswell as coop, put some in their dust bath. Good luck, they are
Re: not going into the coop at nighti have checked the coop with kitchen towel and came up with nothing. it only happened last night and so hopefully it was a one off.
Re: not going into the coop at nightWho knows what chooks are thinking sometimes
Maybe as the weather was nice they were having a camp out Dom Ali Woks My World
Re: not going into the coop at nightMine have started camping out, no red mites but I didn't notice a bit of mould - inadequate ventilation.
I can't get them out of the habit of staying out now, I put them in the coop at dusk every night for two weeks and they still won't do as they are told The run is fox proof (on slabs, 16g mesh including under the roof panels and three bolts on the door, framing for the run is 2"x2") so I've decided to let them do as they please. I do worry a little incase a fox does come snooping, even though I'm confident it wouldn't get in if it tried. Some days you're the pigeon, some days you're the statue.
Re: not going into the coop at night
You forgot to mention the machine gun tower and search lights! I am old and wise, because I was young and stupid!.
Re: not going into the coop at nightBoth last summer and again this summer as soon as the weather gets warmer mine want to roost on top of the coop. I lift them down at dusk and put them in. Last year when the weather cooled they reverted back to going in. It's a big coop with four perches and they huddle together on one perch. No red mite. It just seems as soon as it's nice they want stay out. My run is also fox proof but I still don't want them to sleep out and they don't protest when I lift them down so it's easy enough to do that.
My chicken blog: http://www.carolschickens.com/
Re: not going into the coop at nightIf you're keen on them being in the coop at night you could try putting a torch in there at dusk, they'll usually follow the light.
but it may just be theyre enjoying the fresh air as others have said. The talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don't have
Woody Allen
Re: not going into the coop at nighti tried the light last night before having to pick them up. definitely no red mite and four eggs laid in the coop today. the coop and run is fox proof so i think i will let them do what they want to do tonight.
Re: not going into the coop at nightsix of our ladies totally refuse to go in at night. We have a shelf in the run that covers their food and water. All 6 sit on the shelf at night. We have tried putting them in at night especially in the cold weather, but we gave up in the end. They just go into their coop to lay their eggs. Oh and they haven't got mite.
Re: not going into the coop at night
And the escape tunnels Some days you're the pigeon, some days you're the statue.
Re: not going into the coop at nightWe have the same problem, for about the last week or so our 3 have started staying out all night on their perches in the run. It's not really that warm at night either so really not sure what is going on. Yesterday morning they all started making a racket at 4am and OH went down to check them out but couldn't see anything going on so we just assumed something spooked them. I will check for red mite tonight just in case.
Lyn
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