Pro - Does anyone else's nest boxes get soaked in rain?

[tinaduffyjames]

My 3 girls were let out of the run for the first time Monday, now as soon as I open their door in the morning they start pacing up and down the doorway like caged animals do at the zoo! I keep them in the run in the mornings as I dont want to have to go egg hunting and also want them to fill up on the pellets first. They then come out to FR about 1pm and then get put back in the run around 6. I feel really sorry for them but why do they have to start pacing as soon as they get up? Surely they should be content in the run for the morning. Up until their first day of freedom they were more than happy in the run now they just look so unhappy in there. Also Edie and I had a stand off today because I dared to try and get her back in the run - she rose to full height , fluffed her feathers and started bok bokking at me in a very menacing way- cheeky madam.

22/5/10

20/5/10

[Jools]

The grass is always greener on the other side if you're a chicken .... and now they know that's true!

[docsquid]

Yes, they always want more. It is an endearing, if slightly annoying and at times rather noisy feature of chickens

[Egluntyne]

They will pace and guilt trip you whilst you are in sight, as they associate you with food and freedom. I bet if you observe them from a vantage point where they cant't see you, they will be a lot calmer.

[Chick-a-doodle-doo]

mine are just the same. I let them out mid afternoon but they always have escape plans.

 

The other day I had been and filled the food and water not let them out and gone back inside. I heard a dreadful racket, the sound one of them used to do when she was scared of the cat.. so I came rushing out only to find they were shouting at me to let them out naughty girls.

[Toots]

I have older 2 chickens in a cube that stay in until i get home from work and 3 new chickens in a WIR with an eglu that have only just started to be let out when i get home.

 

the first time i let both groups out together the new girls shot into the cube and the old girls ran straight for the WIR.

 

they were absolutly desperate to free range doing the blues brothers dance at the doors!

[oneyolktoanother]

my girls are just the same they love making me feel guilty

[chicken bark]

They are terrible aren't they. Making us feel guilty. That's why I started off with a run extension, then 25m of Omlet netting - then an additional 50m of netting. All for 3 hens at the time! (electrified of course so they are 'safe'). They don't need that much space but I thought they as well make use of it. The one hen STILL wants the grass on the other side though so it never ends.

[Squawk]

just wait until they learn that their food comes from inside your house. I have one chicken that persistently taps at the kitchen door wanting to come in!

 

I sometimes wonder if I will end up living in their WIR while they live in our house - at least I would get some peace and quiet

[Minkey]

We let ours out for the first time at the weekend too & now they are the same, they guilt-trip me every time they see me! I can only let them free-range when I am out there at the moment as out back fence is not high enough, so I have been keeping out of sight so far today so they can't make me feel bad

 

Minkey

[C&T]

Ours seem to have learnt the difference between me and OH.

 

They know that Me (the hard hearted one) is quite capable of ignoring them. If they are noisy, and wanting to get out, I make a point of walking past them and ignoring them, or reaching for the hsoepipe... So while they still will attempt to moan and whinge to be let out, it is half hearted.

 

However, if OH is about, it is a whole other story! Screeching and shouting - and sure enough, OH will let them out

 

Whether this is all in my imagination or not, I am not sure, but it certainly seems this way!

[Shelle]

My 3 girls get to free range all day in what I consider to be a fairly large fenced off area at the end of the garden. Despite this they still insist on making me feel guilty as soon as they see me by pacing up and down the fence and looking at me hopfully. Last week they even managed to work out how to get the gate open so they could get at the rest of the garden. Sneaky (but clever) things. They did it 3 times in one day once so now we have to put a brick up against it so it's too heavy for them to move

[docsquid]

Ours seem to have learnt the difference between me and OH.

 

Yep, same here! I'm definitely Mrs Nasty and he is Mr Nice!