2 month old chickens refuse to go in coop

[Mouthwash]

My 5 RIR chickens were raised in a 40 gallon brooder in our house for 5 weeks, and are now in a small prefab coop/run combo I got from Amazon (that is a P.O.S.) for the last 3 weeks cause they needed more space. They soon will be going into their sentinel chicken coop I got from TSC in the yard for their permanent home. The problem is these chickens stay in the "run" part of the prefab in the garage and absolutely refuse to go up their ladder into the coop area and if I try to physically pick them up and set them inside they will not leave my hand. They will grip to me like their life depends on it, even drawing blood with their claws. I'm worried that once they go in the yard they'll end up trying to sleep on the ground outside rather than in the coop like they do now. How can I get my chickens to go inside the coop?

 

[sourland]

Ramps or ladders for some reason are difficult for chickens to use. Widening the ramp and decreasing the angle can sometimes help.

 

[Iluveggers]

My 5 RIR chickens were raised in a 40 gallon brooder in our house for 5 weeks, and are now in a small prefab coop/run combo I got from Amazon (that is a P.O.S.) for the last 3 weeks cause they needed more space. They soon will be going into their sentinel chicken coop I got from TSC in the yard for their permanent home. The problem is these chickens stay in the "run" part of the prefab in the garage and absolutely refuse to go up their ladder into the coop area and if I try to physically pick them up and set them inside they will not leave my hand. They will grip to me like their life depends on it, even drawing blood with their claws. I'm worried that once they go in the yard they'll end up trying to sleep on the ground outside rather than in the coop like they do now. How can I get my chickens to go inside the coop?

Keep them inside the coop part for a few days. Once they see it as home, they’ll return to it at night when you let them into the grass.

Are you going to give them a larger run space? The sentinel coop is small and run space is definitely not enough for 5 chickens.

 

[Mouthwash]

Keep them inside the coop part for a few days. Once they see it as home, they’ll return to it at night when you let them into the grass.

Are you going to give them a larger run space? The sentinel coop is small and run space is definitely not enough for 5 chickens.

I've added a 2x6 base to the coop to give them more "air" space for me to put a couple posts for them to roost on, and yes while I'm home from work they have a 6x10 foot run I've built as well. We planned to keep 3, and if any end up being roosters we have to get rid of them but have kind of fallen in love with them, and decided if we get 5 hens, we're gonna keep them.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I wouldn't worry about it at all at this time, as this is not their intended long term home. I would use this time to assess your larger coop for any issues that need to be resolved there, such as if it has a usable ramp (if it uses a ramp), does it need more ventilation, etc. so you can move them out ASAP.

 

[Mouthwash]

I wouldn't worry about it at all at this time, as this is not their intended long term home. I would use this time to assess your larger coop for any issues that need to be resolved there, such as if it has a usable ramp (if it uses a ramp), does it need more ventilation, etc. so you can move them out ASAP.

I dont mean this sarcastically but what constitues a usable ramp? The one it came with will be sort of short now because I've raised it up on 2x6 beams for more height and so I could fasten wire mesh to the bottom. When they were only a couple weeks old the temp one they're in now was outside so I could give them fresh air for a while a few times a week and they had no problem walking up the ramp then. Suddenly now that they're in it full time until they move to their permanent one, they're scared. Not even to use the ramp but they won't let me even set them inside it. I don't even have a ramp on it because they ignored it. I put a board going from inside to the outside so as they roost they can walk straight through the door and they dont.

 

[Iluveggers]

I dont mean this sarcastically but what constitues a usable ramp? The one it came with will be sort of short now because I've raised it up on 2x6 beams for more height and so I could fasten wire mesh to the bottom. When they were only a couple weeks old the temp one they're in now was outside so I could give them fresh air for a while a few times a week and they had no problem walking up the ramp then. Suddenly now that they're in it full time until they move to their permanent one, they're scared. Not even to use the ramp but they won't let me even set them inside it. I don't even have a ramp on it because they ignored it. I put a board going from inside to the outside so as they roost they can walk straight through the door and they dont.

Do you have a photo? That could help us pinpoint the problem. Is there any light inside? How early are you trying to get them in?

 

[aart]

Do you have a photo? That could help us pinpoint the problem. Is there any light inside? How early are you trying to get them in?

Excellent questions^^^

 

[rosemarythyme]

I dont mean this sarcastically but what constitues a usable ramp? The one it came with will be sort of short now because I've raised it up on 2x6 beams for more height and so I could fasten wire mesh to the bottom. When they were only a couple weeks old the temp one they're in now was outside so I could give them fresh air for a while a few times a week and they had no problem walking up the ramp then. Suddenly now that they're in it full time until they move to their permanent one, they're scared. Not even to use the ramp but they won't let me even set them inside it. I don't even have a ramp on it because they ignored it. I put a board going from inside to the outside so as they roost they can walk straight through the door and they dont.

Mostly I look at the angle of the ramp, the width and the amount of traction it offers (in full disclosure I don't use ramps at all, I use stairs, as I've never had chickens refuse to use stairs.) Angle is the usual culprit, however if they used it before now I'm wondering if there's an issue with the coop area, like Iluveggers asked about the amount of light inside the coop, as chickens naturally don't want to use a dark or poorly ventilated space.