Hens Sleeping Standing on the Roost

[phryan]

My 8 hens spend most if not all night standing on their roost, it is rare to see them sitting and sleeping. They are 20 week old red sex links. The roost is a 2x4 on its side with the edges rounded off about 4ft off the floor. There is a webcam in the coop so they can be monitored without disturbing them. The coop has an attached run an ADOR1, they normally head inside and onto the roost about 45 minutes before dark and are up and outside early. Is this standing up normal sleep behavior or is something up?

 

[iwiw60]

Don't feel alone. My 4 BA girls are now 14-15 weeks old and STILL are sleeping on the floor of the coop. I have not been able to get them to roost AT ALL! Go figure...chickens...silly girls.

 

[aart]

My 8 hens spend most if not all night standing on their roost, it is rare to see them sitting and sleeping. They are 20 week old red sex links. The roost is a 2x4 on its side with the edges rounded off about 4ft off the floor. There is a webcam in the coop so they can be monitored without disturbing them. The coop has an attached run an ADOR1, they normally head inside and onto the roost about 45 minutes before dark and are up and outside early. Is this standing up normal sleep behavior or is something up?

Is the 2x4 with the wide side up?
An they stand leg straight up all night long?


That is interesting....I think mine all settle down on their hocks to sleep rather than stay standing.
Will be interested in seeing what others' experiences are....and will double check if I go out well after dark.

 

[iwiw60]

I have a webcam in my coop and as I said in my earlier post they are still sleeping on the coop floor. They must spend almost an hour every night swishing the pine shavings around...here, there, everywhere. Then it's nite-nite for them...on the FLOOR....can't seem to break them of it.

 

[phryan]

Is the 2x4 with the wide side up?
An they stand leg straight up all night long?



That is interesting....I think mine all settle down on their hocks to sleep rather than stay standing.
Will be interested in seeing what others' experiences are....and will double check if I go out well after dark.

The roost is a 2x4 laying flat, they stand on the 4" side. I occasionally see 1 or 2 of them sitting but mostly they stand. My concern is they were too hot but night time temps are in the 60s.

 

[6of6chicks]

Isn't that so funny - how every set of hens has their own weird behaviors, lol! Mine sleep sitting on the perches just fine. But my worry is that they practically roost on TOP of each other. My five 10-week old buff orpingtons sleep so bunched up that they take up less than a foot of perch space. The overnight low was 85 last night - you'd think they would get hot sleeping like that? They're honestly so crammed together that I have a hard time counting heads to make sure they're all in there!

 

[petrel]

Temperature or mites on the roosting bars would have been my first two guesses.

 

[rfreedlund]

At 8 weeks old I went into the coop late evening when there was very little light left inside. At that time there were only about 8 of my 48 that would sleep on the roost. I took the remaining 40 one-by-one and placed them on the roost. The next night it was a few less than 40. I haven't had to do it since because after two nights of me placing them there they all started doing it on their own and have been ever since. The first few nights on their own was a bit funny, though, as most of them tried to get on the top and it was quite crowded with a lot of jostling around. Now they even it out between the top two (leaving the bottom two empty). My next roost will have them all at one level so there is less fighting for position.

 

[pamonarch]

Isn't that so funny - how every set of hens has their own weird behaviors, lol! Mine sleep sitting on the perches just fine. But my worry is that they practically roost on TOP of each other. My five 10-week old buff orpingtons sleep so bunched up that they take up less than a foot of perch space. The overnight low was 85 last night - you'd think they would get hot sleeping like that? They're honestly so crammed together that I have a hard time counting heads to make sure they're all in there!

I have three Buffs that sleep on a 2x4 window sill by the coop door...i have a night cam in the coop and when I check them at least two of them are standing up. When they first fly up to roost they are crowded on the 2x4, in a row..the middle ones head it tucked under the first one...i first thought she might suffocate..but they have been up there like that for 8 months now...they will be a year old in April 2018...silly girls!

 

[pamonarch]

I have three Buffs that sleep on a 2x4 window sill by the coop door...i have a night cam in the coop and when I check them at least two of them are standing up. When they first fly up to roost they are crowded on the 2x4, in a row..the middle ones head it tucked under the first one...i first thought she might suffocate..but they have been up there like that for 8 months now...they will be a year old in April 2018...silly girls!

you can see them on the sill in the photo..two of them are standing and it's after 1am...excuse the chords ..i need to tack them up..lol.i have 15 birds..the others are roosting to the right of the photo behind the wall.