Stupid chickens!

[Small pumpkin]

i've got 4 white leghorns & 1 cream legbar that refuse to sleep in any of the hen houses. They have 3 to choose from . When they first arrived, I was on one of my adventures in rhyl. So the other half was in charge. they were put in there own run and house. So they can see my other chickens but not get beaten up by them! As all new birds are. But within two day they had jumped out of their run in with the other girls and started sleeping in the plum tree. So the other half left them to it . To be fair they are perfectly safe up there. Nothing can turn them into lunch when they are up there. They don't suffer that dodgy period between them going to bed and me shutting them away. Now the plum tree has no leaves left on it and the weather is colder and wetter, and I don't even want to talk about the tail end of the hurricane that is supposed to hit us tomorrow!
Does anyone have any bright ideas how I can get them to go in at night? I can't pick them out of the tree when they have gone to sleep because they roost to high up.

[Lisasbolt]

Put a barrier around the tree so they cannot get up there.....

But i really do not know so good luck

[Lisasbolt]

I have done a bit of research on this forum before in the past and it seems to be very useful

BYC Forum

[Lumpy]

Tree house?

[Small pumpkin]

Chickens have started on a training program. I've just been out and caught them ( it was mealworm and egg collecting time). So they are now in a little house and run they can't get out of. We will see if they take them selves into the house at bed time ( in about half hour). If they don't, at least I can reach them to put them in the house. They will be let out to do there own thing again in the morning. I hate them having such a small run when they are used to so much space. But it's for there own good. And not for long. Then we will do the same again tomorrow evening, and continue to do so until they get the idea.

[Small pumpkin]

Tree house?

Nice idea lumpy. But we could never make it strong enough to cope with the weather we have. If we could make it strong enough to cope with the weather, it would be to heavy for the plum tree. He's not a very big tree. I'm just vertically challenged . Finally if you think I'm climbing a tree every week to clean out a chicken house........... You're very very wrong

[Scarlet]

I don't think they will go for it, but I may be wrong. I had a similar problem with some bantams (and my turkeys) chickens love to roost high up and if they've found something they wont swap for something lower. My turkeys used to go for the rafters of an old barn roof, I tried all sorts to get the bu@@ers down, ladders with a few bamboo canes taped together, trying to poke them off in the end I had to collect them up every evening and put them to bed. Though I've got my fingers crossed for you!

[Small pumpkin]

They all went into the little house by themselves this evening. We will see what happens

[roitelet]

Keep it up for a few days and they will learn!!!!!!

[Verinda]

My granny lived right by the sea and her hens roosted in a tree every night. She used to put hay underneath the tree so the eggs wouldn't break!

Sorry, no help at all. Hopefully the wind tomorrow will put them off tree roosting!

[Small pumpkin]

Hopefully the wind tomorrow will put them off tree roosting!

Unfortunately the very strong winds last weekend didn't put them off. I was awake all bl@@dy night worrying about them. So I have to train them to go in at night, so I can get some sleep

[Verinda]

I am certain I would be equally worried if it was my hens up in a tree, but maybe your hens are happy, I suppose they are birds...or maybe that's me being stupid?!!

[janzbro]

Whenever I get some new ones they are confined to barracks for a week so they associate it with a warm safe place AKA home.

Since they are ok with your present birds could you cordern off the tree and go down earlier and physically put them in the coop by hand and lock them in.

[Verinda]

SP, did your hens cope with the windy nights in the tree? or did you manage to get them into the hen house? I hope it was the latter!

[Small pumpkin]

SP, did your hens cope with the windy nights in the tree? or did you manage to get them into the hen house? I hope it was the latter!

I managed to get them into a house. They have been in the house 2 nights running. I catch them about half hour before there bet time ( Which they are most unhappy about! ), and put them in the little run, that is attached. They take themselves into the house at bedtime. They don't seem to mind to much as they don't all fly out as soon as I open the door in the morning. I've normal walked away to open up another chicken house before they appear