cathypancake Posted November 26, 2009 Share Posted November 26, 2009 I have 3, 15 week old Wyandotte bantams who seem to prefer huddling on the floor of the hen house together rather than standing on the perch. I'm sure I read somewhere that this is not to be encouraged. The floor is covered in straw & sawdust - am I making it too comfy for them, might the perch be too wide for them to stand on or is this just what young birds do!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted November 26, 2009 Share Posted November 26, 2009 They dont always understand what a perch is, some are naturals others not! The perch should be somewhere between 1.5 and 1.75 inches wide they will need a slightly wider perch later about 2" as they are a busty breed, f the perch is too narrow they wont like using it Try lifting one off the ground on to the perch and see how they take to it Make sure the perch isnt too high as they are heavy birds and still young, about a foot off the floor sholuld be enough for now Edited perch sizes didnt read that they were bantams D'oh! sorry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chook n Boo Mum Posted November 26, 2009 Share Posted November 26, 2009 15 weeks may still be a bit young to have grasped the whole perching thing.......I have 2 17 week old Light Sussexes who nestled down on roosting bars in the from about 13 weeks........I also have 4 17ish week old Pekins who, apart from the he/she Berry, haven't shown any inclination to roost at night, the 3 girls snuggle down in the nest box & Berry perches on the edge, though whether this is due to the lack of space in the nestbox rather than a preference to perch is open to comment ..........my Araucana cross bantam (20-22 wks?) is not interested in perching unless she is kicked out of the nest box and various of my big girls alternate between nesting and perching. Do they perch during the day, not in the house necessarily? All of mine are capable of perching, they just prefer to snuggled down to sleep ....as long as I get out to clear the nest of poo before any eggs arrive I accept things as they are Sha x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted November 26, 2009 Share Posted November 26, 2009 they will need a slightly wider perch later about 2" as they are a busty breed Love that description! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cathypancake Posted November 27, 2009 Author Share Posted November 27, 2009 Thanks for your advice everyone - I think I just need to relax a bit & let them do what they want to do. I'm such a meddler - I'm sure they'll sort themselves out soon & from what you've said, what they're doing sounds pretty normal! Thanks Cathypancake X Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
