Tag: coop

Chicken Behavior at Night

Chickens are active and full of personality by day… then when the sun goes down they turn into a total milk dud. I don’t understand the reason for this zombie-like behavior, except maybe as an asset to chicken keepers.
Chickens have a strong homing instinct which drives them to return to the same place to roost at dusk. Because of that homing instinct, once chickens have spent a few nights in the coop provided for them, they will continue to return there night after night. However, it is not uncommon to have one or even a few that insist on choosing another place to roost, such as a tree limb, roof, or fence. If this occurs, you can place them in the coop by hand. It may take a week or so before they figure out where the home is supposed to be. But with a little persistence on your part, they all do. So, yes, chickens are trainable.
A chicken’s night behavior is indeed weird,  but if you’re smart you can certainly use it to your advantage. The night is the best time to handle, inspect, and doctor chickens. Especially the ones that are difficult or impossible to catch during the day. Every flock has a few birds that are feisty and full attitude, don’t sweat it… they all turn into a sac of potatoes when the sun goes down.
Even if you sneak a new bird in the coop after dark, it will most likely go unnoticed until morning. Some chicken keepers choose to introduce birds this way. However, I must warn you, a chicken’s night stupor disappears the moment they march out of the coop at the crack of dawn. Then it’s a whole new ball game of unkind introductions!

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How Many Egg Layers for Your Family

Eggs, Gavin Flock

If you are considering keeping backyard chickens to provide fresh eggs for your family, it’s important to know how many hens you’ll need. If you don’t have a source for excess eggs you’ll want to make sure you don’t have too many hens. Maintaining a flock also means an extra chore, the more birds you have the more work there is, so it’s best to start sensibly.
The rule of thumb is two standard-size hens per family member. This will keep your refrigerator stocked with an ample supply of eggs every week.
Note: Although starting with a small flock, make sure you buy or build a coop that will allow you to add more birds later. More space is always better than not enough. Expanding coops size can be an expensive afterthought.

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How Much Space Your Chickens will Need

The subject of how much space per bird is often a question of great debate. There are minimum requirement guidelines, but most chicken keepers would agree that 1 foot per chicken is a cramped environment.
If your flock is not allowed to free range during the day and is kept constantly in cramped quarters, you’re going to find yourself scrambling around looking for a way to separate the docile birds from the aggressive ones.  A pecking order is established in all flocks, confined or not. If there isn’t enough room for the weaker birds to escape trouble, you’ll be pretty frazzled by their battles and the sometimes the unfortunate outcome.
You can get away with a small housing space if your chickens will be free-range during the day.  When it’s all said and done, at the end of each day there is usually only one argument… the nests. This problem is usually resolved quickly by the boss hens who choose first, leaving the weaker birds with what’s left.
The best living arrangement for your flock is to offer them space, and the more the better. Happy chickens are those who are free from conflict. Happy chickens are healthy chickens, and that means better egg production.
Recommended Space per Chicken, My Opinion…
At a minimum, 2 square feet of floor space in the coop if your chickens are allowed to free range or have a fenced area attached to the housing area. If your birds are confined all the time, 3-4 square feet of floor space. You won’t gain anything by trying to house too many birds in a small area, the truth is, happy birds fill the egg basket plain and simple.

The Flock 31118
Chicken Coop at TBN Ranch
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