Ever wonder what happens when chickens go to sleep? I had heard that chickens liked to go back in their coop at dusk but I wasn’t prepared for how rigid their bedtime was. Every night at about the same time they all start walking up the little ramp from their run into their coop. I started keeping track for a few days to see what time their little chicken minds were telling them it was time for bed:
They seem to be getting a little later each night, which makes sense since sunset has been about a minute later each night.
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A few nights ago they all went to bed but FoShizzle must have been distracted because she was left behind. She ran back and forth calling out for her friends until finally Rey (the large brown hen chickie) ran out to help her, but that didn’t help either. FoShizzle ran all over the coop looking for the other chicks. (I think her large plume of feathers is starting to affect her ability to see above her line of sight.)
All the chicks went to bed as usually tonight…except FoShizzle…she must have been daydreaming. Then she couldn’t figure out where everyone went and ran around calling for her friends…they kept calling back for her but she forgot how to get into the coop. At one point you can see Rey come back out for her! Eventually she figured it out. ??? #sunset #chickencoop #raisingchickens
Eventually she found her way into the coop, where she was able to climb up to the top roost with the others:
They sleep every night on the top roost in their coop. I have to get some video of that soon…it’s very entertaining. They spend about 30 minutes trying to get the best spot on the roost, squeezing towards one side, sometimes squeezing each other off the roost completely and then the entire process starts again. They sleep perched on their little roosts all night and are so excited when we reopen the coop door again in the morning. The below time lapse was when they were first learning to roost, on a small makeshift roost just off the floor:
A video posted by Ashley Hackshaw (@lilblueboo) on
I would have never guessed that I’d be SO interested in chickens! They really are so interesting and entertaining!!! I love all of their escapades and drama! Seriously, there could be a chicken soap opera! Does Boo have a hard time eating chicken anymore? I know this sounds like a silly question but she’s such a sweet, sensitive child that I wondered if she’s ask that “question” before. I’m definitely not a vegetarian but absolutely hate it when I get behind a chicken truck (I live in Gainesville, GA – the chicken capital of the world – for realz!), I literally have to turn the other way at a traffic light because I know they are on their way to um, you know…uggg!
We definitely don’t eat as much chicken. When I took her to the grocery store recently she asked if we could get beef instead of chicken. All I need to do now is get a cow and we’ll be vegetarians!
My kids raised cows for FFA but we still eat steak. Just not from the ones we got to know and love. LOL You make raising chickens look like fun. I might quit eating chickens if they were more like pets. Especially when you can see personalities. Very entertaining. I love your posts.
My husband has wanted chickens for years but I was never interested until now. When will they be old enough to start laying eggs? Your chick our so cute.
Have had my girls for a year. Love that all 5 give me 3-4 eggs a day and every now and then I get 5 eggs. We let them out of the coop every couple days for a little while. I had planted some impatiens – they liked the soft dirt for dirt baths and scratched some of them out of the ground – it’s OK, I just replanted. If it had been one of the dogs, I would have fussed. We have Matilda, Olivia, Henrietta, Clotilde and Lincoln. No, not a rooster – granddaughter named the chick Lincoln, just in case there was a boy. Love my girls.
I find your blog posts about your chickens so delightful. The chickens seem to have so much personality. Love the names you have selected for them. I love reading about them and seeing all their pictures.