The three youngest (Leghorns Astrid and Sunshine, and Barnevelder Sylvia) and Phyllis are no trouble when left to go to bed on their own. They only squawk in the morning when the other coops start whingeing. They sleep in the orange cube.
Fleur doesn't like going in either coop. In calmer times, I'd leave her to roost in the run if that's what she wants to do. I can't do that at the moment though, because she wakes up with the dawn, starts moving around, and then that kicks off a commotion by those who are in coops (and can't bear the thought of someone else being out when they are not).
The rest of the group that live in the main coop tend to try and pile into the other, purple, coop, but they don't all get on and there is a lot of vying for dominance. Even 2 year old hatchmates Violet and Bott have fights at night, althogh they get on reasonably well during the day. Whichever of them gets in to the coop first then allows, or does not allow, others to get in.
Left to sort it out for themselves, those who are not allowed in have been going round to the orange coop, chucking ot the occupants, and then making it difficult for them to regain entry. The bullies peck at night, and cause a ruckus in the morning while waiting for the doors to open.
So, each evening as it starts to get dark, I've been round to the orange cube, forced out Violet or Bott, and then herded any Purplers who aren't in bed the area of the coop, and putting something over the entrance to the run so that they can't get back in and round to the orange coop. I've also been making Fleur join them (she had free choice for a few days, and each time she chose the Purple crowd).
Then I go back in the house until just before I go to bed. At that point I come out, and see where we are. Some evenings, everyone is in, and I open the flap ready for the morning. Some evenings, Fleur is sitting on hte ladder looking at a closed door, and I have to faff around getting her in. One evening, Fleur and Poppy were on the ladder looking at a closed door.
Yesterday evening, I went to eject Violet/Bott from the orange cube to discover that it was Poppy. Poppy (along with Gloria and Evacuee Kate is nearly 9, and is a lovely-to-people girl). i hesitate, and decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and left her there. The rest of the Purplers were shepherded into the coop area, flap down, and I went in.
I came out at bedtime to discover Fleur was on hte ladder looking at a closed door (no suprise), but I also discovered that Phyllis (our 6 year old Allotmenteer, gets on with every group) and Astrid (our 1 year old Leghorn) were roosting on the mezzanine by their coop. Poppy had not let them in.
So I farted around with Fleur, and then I attempted to sort out the other two. They were in a part of the run that is only 1m tall, and the "door" into the side only opens a fraction. I squeezed and squozed myself but I couldn't reach them. Chickens don't see well in the dark, but they do often move towards light.
I tried openeing the nest box and shining a torch so the light came out of the now-open pop hole. . Fail. I opened the back of the Cube and put the torch by the pop hole. Nothing. I tried all sorts of things, even prodding them with a small pole. Nothing.
In almer times, I'd have left them, but this isn't calmer times. There would be trouble in the morning. In the end I had to grab whatever bit of them I could, and I pulled a bit to make Astrid move. She screeched (don't blame her), and luckily for me, she made a run for the light.
Phyllis is a much bigger hen, and is older and not so flexible. I couldn't do quite the same thing with her. I grabbed some feathers and did some firm tugs. She didn't move. I prodded. In the end, I had to grap her near her neck, it ww enough to make her shuffle forward, but she struggled finding the ladder in the dark. I had to put my arm down to make a bridge, and twisting and leaning really hurt. Luckily, she made a lunge for the light, and got in.
I then had to untwist myself, and get up in a very small space. I shut the pop hole, reconnected the auto opener, and realised that I was trapped. The openeer for the pop hole is a long bar. There was no way I could get round it. Even bent ouble, I'd have trouble getting under it. There was no room to squat and move forwards. Deep sigh.
Eventually I had freed myself, I opened the back of the cube, retreived the torch which had falled in between the roosting bars, shut the back up, and I went back in the house.
...........
At 5.20 this morning, the whingeing started. I got up, and looked out of the window to see if the openers had opened. I saw Sylvia in the garden.
But I'd seen Sylvia in the Cibe last night! Hadn't I? I had. I had. I was sure I had. Maybe it was someone else in the garden. I looked again. I couldn't see her. I put on my dressing gown, and went downstairs. As I opened the back door, I could see Astrid in the garden. As I walked across the garden, I saw Sunshine. No wonder the other two coops were going nuts. Even if the orange coop pop hole had opened early, how on earth were they all in the garden?! I ran.
All the pop holes were closed.
And then I saw it.
I'd left the egg port door off.
Easy access for a fox.
I was so very lucky that the fox had not been.
