Chicks won’t put themselves to bed!

[BigBlueHen53]

So, looking at that as if I were a chick ... what I see is a ramp going up to a big, blank wall. I assume that's an automatic door though, that's open all day and you say the chicks go in and out of it. But at night they don't go in. So you have a light inside there that you turn on at dusk but the chicks still don't go in. So do you go out and stuff them through that little door, or place them at the top of the ramp and encourage them to go through the door, or what exactly, to put them to bed?

 

[cktap62]

So, looking at that as if I were a chick ... what I see is a ramp going up to a big, blank wall. I assume that's an automatic door though, that's open all day and you say the chicks go in and out of it. But at night they don't go in. So you have a light inside there that you turn on at dusk but the chicks still don't go in. So do you go out and stuff them through that little door, or place them at the top of the ramp and encourage them to go through the door, or what exactly, to put them to bed?

Yes, automatic door and they go in/out all day, not afraid of the ramp. At dusk I put them gently in through the door. This was the first night, I put them on the roost but only 2 stayed up there. I need to tie up those cords. I was worried about them getting cold until we got this hot weather. They are so sweet.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Changing out those puppy pee pads, if that's what they are, will get expensive in a hurry. If I may make a suggestion. Put construction or all-purpose sand in the poop trays instead*. Use a kitty litter scoop to remove droppings daily, and your coop will stay fresh and clean.

*The lips around my poop trays were nailed to the bases, but the sand began to sift out and soon the nails began to back out, leaving gaps. I had the builder come back and replace the nails with screws, then I sealed the joints with expanding foam. Caulk would work, too. Also, you can fortify the sand with a top dressing of Sweet PDZ to keep the smell down. This product is available in the horse section of your local feed store.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Oh. And you can use a little Gorilla tape to tack your cords to the walls.

 

[cktap62]

Oh. And you can use a little Gorilla tape to tack your cords to the walls.

It’s vinyl flooring. I just put hemp bedding on it for the time being. Thanks for the tips!

 

[dearmeghann]

If you can create a temporary ramp to the roosting bars, that might be helpful. You said they're okay with the ramp that's inside? It's not too steep for them?

We ran into our girls not liking the steepness of the ramp and our buff orpington not wanting to jump up on the roosting bar. We created a movable mini roosting bar for her to hop onto, then hop onto the real roosting bar.

And like everyone said, they'll eventually figure it out. You might have some who are little divas (my 1yo buff orp who still makes her daddy pick her up every night), but the rest figured it out fairly quickly.

And yes, definitely tape those cords. Chickens are way too curious.

 

[cktap62]

If you can create a temporary ramp to the roosting bars, that might be helpful. You said they're okay with the ramp that's inside? It's not too steep for them?

We ran into our girls not liking the steepness of the ramp and our buff orpington not wanting to jump up on the roosting bar. We created a movable mini roosting bar for her to hop onto, then hop onto the real roosting bar.

And like everyone said, they'll eventually figure it out. You might have some who are little divas (my 1yo buff orp who still makes her daddy pick her up every night), but the rest figured it out fairly quickly.

And yes, definitely tape those cords. Chickens are way too curious.

I think the ramp inside is too steep for them, we need to modify it. This morning they were all up on the poop shelf scratching around, I tried to get them to come down the ramp with mealworms but they were having trouble (we put them up there last night). I put them down and they immediately went out to eat and drink. Now they went in to huddle together inside as it’s a cool morning. So they know to go in, just not at night! We will keep putting them in at night and hopefully they’ll figure it out. Thank you!

 

[dearmeghann]

I think the ramp inside is too steep for them, we need to modify it. This morning they were all up on the poop shelf scratching around, I tried to get them to come down the ramp with mealworms but they were having trouble (we put them up there last night). I put them down and they immediately went out to eat and drink. Now they went in to huddle together inside as it’s a cool morning. So they know to go in, just not at night! We will keep putting them in at night and hopefully they’ll figure it out. Thank you!

If you can put another brick at the bottom, that might help. Or add additional treads. As for the automatic door, we have ours open in the morning on a timer, but since I'm afraid of accidentally crushing them, we set it for later at night and just press the manual close button ourselves.

 

[cktap62]

If you can put another brick at the bottom, that might help. Or add additional treads. As for the automatic door, we have ours open in the morning on a timer, but since I'm afraid of accidentally crushing them, we set it for later at night and just press the manual close button ourselves.

Yes, we raised the bottom of the ramp up and put another little ramp that turns. Tonight I’m going to try enticing them up with mealworms.

 

[dearmeghann]

Yes, we raised the bottom of the ramp up and put another little ramp that turns. Tonight I’m going to try enticing them up with mealworms.

We definitely did that! I put some on each tread and watched them figure it out