JazzyzGurl Posted April 2, 2020 Share Posted April 2, 2020 Hi! I'm new to chickens - just picked up six lovely ladies yesterday who presented me with two eggs this morning already! I have the MK2 Cube with 3 run sections attached and plan to let the girls free range once they've settled in and I'm sure they'll know where 'home' is. With the six of them in the MK2 Cube there is plenty of room (this was a concern of mine!) My first question is this - the chickens really don't seem to like the floor of the MK2 - they keep looking down at it and they act as though they're afraid to walk on it - will they adjust to it? They were kept in a traditional coop for the first six months of their lives, so this is new to them. Should I be doing something to ease the trasition? Second - I have the auto-door and both last night and tonight they all go into the coop (though some of them are terrible about blocking the door so it takes forever for them to all get inside), but the last one in doesn't go completely inside, so the auto-door won't close. Is this another adjustment thing, or should I be doing something different to get them to go all the way inside? I've thought about trying to have the inside light on a little longer because I read that chickens cannot see in the dark, so maybe they can't see to get in and situated? Or could this relate to their dislike of the floor? Thank you all for the help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted April 2, 2020 Share Posted April 2, 2020 That's one reason why I wouldn't have an auto door.... sorry They will get used to the floor - just like us when we lay new flooring in the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted April 2, 2020 Share Posted April 2, 2020 I can see that would be a problem with an auto door because I often have one girl who sleeps in the doorway. Can you overrride the automatic closure and close it manually? Sometimes a chook sleeping in the doorway is just because she wants to (I had an araucana banty who always did) or sometimes because she’s bottom of the pecking order and can’t get any further in (this occasionally happens to my pekin). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted April 2, 2020 Share Posted April 2, 2020 I've heard of too many birds getting locked out in the run....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzyzGurl Posted April 2, 2020 Author Share Posted April 2, 2020 3 hours ago, mullethunter said: I can see that would be a problem with an auto door because I often have one girl who sleeps in the doorway. Can you overrride the automatic closure and close it manually? Sometimes a chook sleeping in the doorway is just because she wants to (I had an araucana banty who always did) or sometimes because she’s bottom of the pecking order and can’t get any further in (this occasionally happens to my pekin). Yes, the door can be opened or closed manually - and the original Cube door is still operational as well. I got the auto-door because I'm not always at home in the evening and we have a lot of predators (fox, coyote, skunk, raccoon, neighbors cats, and occasionally dogs.) We've staked down the skirting on the outside of the run and have considered adding a line of electric fence to the outside of the run as well, if we can't be assured they'll all be safely inside the Cube at night. Obviously we're home now ... but hoping to come up with a solution to the door-lingering. I'd thought perhaps it was a pecking order issue - will have to see if it's consistently the same couple of chickens who don't get all the way in. The first night it was the Black Australorp (who seems the most anxious in general), the second night it was the Blue Cochin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzyzGurl Posted April 2, 2020 Author Share Posted April 2, 2020 5 hours ago, The Dogmother said: That's one reason why I wouldn't have an auto door.... sorry They will get used to the floor - just like us when we lay new flooring in the house. We're are hoping to get them into the swing of the auto-door for the times we're not able to be home at dusk. For at least the next several weeks we'll be here to ensure that everyone is all the way in before full dark. It is nice to have it open in the morning, so I can enjoy my coffee inside while watching them wander down the ramp and start their day . Thanks for the encouragement on the floor - It's reassuring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted April 2, 2020 Share Posted April 2, 2020 Have you tried putting slabs under your run and housing? that will make it much more secure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzyzGurl Posted April 3, 2020 Author Share Posted April 3, 2020 3 hours ago, The Dogmother said: Have you tried putting slabs under your run and housing? that will make it much more secure. We have it set up with the wheels with the idea of moving it around every day or two, so no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted April 3, 2020 Share Posted April 3, 2020 That seems like a good idea at first, but everyone on here will be smiling - you will end up with an awful lot of bare earth. Best to put it on slabs and add some litter such as Aubiose hemp bedding and kickboards - so easy to muck out every few weeks and composts like a dream. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzyzGurl Posted April 3, 2020 Author Share Posted April 3, 2020 Thanks for the tips, Dogmother We live in the country and don't really have a lawn, but more about 4 acres of weeds that we mow, surrounded by woods, so we'll give the moving it every couple of days a try and if that gets old consider where a good more permanent location might be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sallybeligum Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 How is it now with the chickens? I'm following this post very carefully because, just like you, I also bought the Cube MK2 with the auto door. I am very curious to know what happened with the chickens... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
