Hens roost on-top of coop instead of inside

[eagerbones]

Hello, I am new here and new to chickens, though I put a ton of research into it before I started. The problem I am having is my chicken don't want to nest in their coop, but on top of it. Granted, their coop is more like.. a nesting area. I have 3 chickens in a 6x10 run. Every single night without fail I have to go outside and put them inside to sleep. I don't want them roosting on the top because it's dangerous, and I don't want poop up there.. My ladies are 15 weeks old. Once I place them inside they settle down and sleep all night. But they show NO interest in sleeping inside. It's so annoying.

 

[50-45-1]

The little hutch pictured is way to small for adult chickens. How much ventilation is there when the chickens are closed in?
Also chickens like to roost on a perch.
They will need much larger accommodations and are letting you know it now.

 

[eagerbones]

The little hutch pictured is way to small for adult chickens. How much ventilation is there when the chickens are closed in?
Also chickens like to roost on a perch.
They will need much larger accommodations and are letting you know it now.

Well they are in a run, closed up and safe. I don't close them in the coop. The entire thing is open and stays open. The coops is simply for them to use as a nesting spot and sleep in.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Hi. Chickens naturally want to roost on the highest spot they can. In your situation, that is the top of the coop. I am sorry to say that your set-up does not look very safe to me. If a dog, coyote or raccoon really wanted to get in to your chickens, that plastic fencing would not protect your birds. And since your little nesting box is open, your hens have no place to hide from a predator. They need a little building of some kind, a secure coop you can lock them in at night, to keep them safe. Good luck, and i hope you enjoy your flock for a long time to come!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Chickens vote with their feet. If they don't like the accommodations you've given them, they'll find some place they like better to roost.

That box is really only big enough to serve as a nest box. Nothing about it says "roost here" to a chicken. There's not even a roost bar.

 

[eagerbones]

Hi. Chickens naturally want to roost on the highest spot they can. In your situation, that is the top of the coop. I am sorry to say that your set-up does not look very safe to me. If a dog, coyote or raccoon really wanted to get in to your chickens, that plastic fencing would not protect your birds. And since your little nesting box is open, your hens have no place to hide from a predator. They need a little building of some kind, a secure coop you can lock them in at night, to keep them safe. Good luck, and i hope you enjoy your flock for a long time to come!

Their run is not plastic wire! It's heavy duty wire with a very small sized hardware cloth over top of it. No predators can get into this run. It's just hard to tell with the picture.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Their run is not plastic wire! It's heavy duty wire with a very small sized hardware cloth over top of it. No predators can get into this run. It's just hard to tell with the picture.

Then why not treat the box as a nest only and place roosts somewhere else that you find acceptable, and the hens can just roost there? Nothing says they have to be in an enclosed unit for the night, as long as they're safe from bad weather and predators, they can sleep in the run instead.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Their run is not plastic wire! It's heavy duty wire with a very small sized hardware cloth over top of it. No predators can get into this run. It's just hard to tell with the picture.

My apologies.

 

[eagerbones]

Then why not treat the box as a nest only and place roosts somewhere else that you find acceptable, and the hens can just roost there? Nothing says they have to be in an enclosed unit for the night, as long as they're safe from bad weather and predators, they can sleep in the run instead.

I will be adding roosts into the run. It is a safe place for them, and it has a full roof. Thank you and everyone else for the advice. I will treat the 'coop' as a nest box instead!