Chickenkeeping "Pole" *UPDATE*

[2DogsFarm]

COTH Poultry Mavens, pls weigh in!
Background:
On a FB page about barns a poster asked about the thin metal rods running horizontally at intervals in her old wood barn. Consensus was they had been installed to prevent the sagging walls from collapsing.
Someone guessed they’d been put there for chickens to roost.
Quickly shot down as chickens were said to need a 2x4 flat surface to comfortably roost.
Here’s where I made the mistake of saying in my 15yrs of chickens, they had, to a hen, preferred to roost on the 1/2" lath that frames partitions in the coop.
I’d read about them needing a round or flat surface & had peeled the bark off some 3" branches & set them in the coop. One at an angle, floor to about 2’ off the ground because my first flock was 6wk chicks & I’d also read the youngsters would sometimes be unable to reach a high roost. The other straight across & 2’ from the floor. They do use these, but only if there’s no room on the preferred Skinny
Every flock, beginning with these & since has chosen to roost on the lath 🤷
I have been lambasted, told I’m endangering the health of my birds, leaving them vulnerable to leg/foot issues & the danger of frostbite when they can’t cover their toes by crouching flat to cover them.
I think animals know what works for them & choose accordingly. I’ve never had a crippled hen & the only case of frostbite was to one rooster’s large comb.
AITC(hicken)A?

Pic to illustrate, round roosts behind the lath, Xtra Crispy demonstrating the Roost Of Choice:

[Luseride]

Some of mine roost on the chain link dog pen panel, some roost in a tree, but most prefer the board at the top of the goat stall. Mine have been mostly free range once they got big enough to get over the six foot chain link panel even though they go back in the coop area to eat and nest.

[Simkie]

@2DogsFarm

I think animals know what works for them & choose accordingly.

Lol have you MET a horse?

Chickens don’t wrap their feet around their roost. When they roost, the majority of the weight is in the keel bone, not the feet. A wide, flat roost is better for them given all that. You could add a wide roost slightly higher than this narrow one, and they would all transition.

[2DogsFarm]

I’ve met a total of 7 of my own & many schoolies when I worked for & rode them
Judging by those in my care, Out beats In.
Even in frigid weather, even with freshly-bedded stalls as an alternative & windbreak.
Hay placed outside trumps hay in stalls & the murky water in the trough is tastier than that in newly-scrubbed buckets in stalls.
But as in 20yrs of letting them choose, all remain in good health, they get to choose

I’d think the various hens, over the 15yrs, would have exhibited some effects of their poor choice of roost.
If I can figure a way to add a flatter surface above or to their Roost of Choice, I’ll experiment.

@Luseride I stopped freeranging when I lost 2 hens to a redtail hawk in a week.
Hawk had the audacity to be chowing on 1 in my driveway as I pulled in
I’ve never had more than 7, so that ended the freeranging.
They have a large fenced yard attached to the coop & that’s been enough to keep them happy.
Unless I’m oblivious to some sign of misery in their captivity.

[Simkie]

@2DogsFarm

But as in 20yrs of letting them choose, all remain in good health, they get to choose

But if presented with 50# of sweet feed, are horses going to choose not to eat it? Or are they going to gorge and founder or colic? There are A LOT of choices any animal makes that aren’t productive to their best interests.

I’d think the various hens, over the 15yrs, would have exhibited some effects of their poor choice of roost.
If I can figure a way to add a flatter surface above or to their Roost of Choice, I’ll experiment.

Have you butchered many of them out & examined the keel? Problems can be subtle, but still problems. Their choice on roost is “high.” But that doesn’t mean that improving the surface isn’t still better for them

[Hilary]

My hens have a variety of places to roost - two of them prefer the 2x4 (wide part is the flat part), roost bar, and the others find a spot on the repurposed tack locker - some on the saddlerack - so a triangular perch, some on the flat surface of the top, and some on the lath-sized pieces of wood that edge a couple of spots. They definitely all have their favorite spots, and friends, but they move around and I"m kind of surprised that the roost bar I made for them is the least popular.

I find them to be both remarkably smart - one once told me my water bucket was overflowing, and also dumb - they eat styrofoam. So if they are not complaining (and they do complain!) having a variety of places to roost seems to be a good plan.

[2DogsFarm]

Agreed on the horse lack of Good Diet choices
No, no necropsy.
My hens die of predation, illness or age.
They’re layers, not intended as meat birds.
But the ones I’ve called (sour crop, tumor on neck & ???) didn’t seen to have malformed keels.
Today has high wind coming from the direction the coop opens.
I feed/clean chickens before horses & when I checked about an hour after, all were inside, avoiding the wind.
It’s calmed down some & the sun is out, so I might see how they feel about going into the yard now.
There’s plenty space in the coop out of the wind if they choose to stay in.
Promise, if I go out & can find a suitable piece of wood, I’ll set up a higher, flatter roost.
& Report back here

[reefy]

“Xtra Crispy”

[2DogsFarm]

The others are:
Noodle
Salad
PotPie
Bunny (Easter Egger)
Coach - a Cochin hen friends gave me with this name
Petey the rooster - for his Pretty Tail

My first flock had a Houdan hen that a friend asked me to name using his Drag name.
So she was Misty Cologne
Fun Fact about Houdans:
As they get older their feathers get more speckled B/W.
That’s referred to as “becoming gayer”
Friend loved that when I told him😄

PSA:
I have installed a 2x4 in the coop, same height as the beloved lath.
I’ll hopefully get a pic when I close the coop.
They’re now enjoying the breezy day out in their yard.

[2DogsFarm]

The Chicken Jury is Out.
This morning, when I opened the coop, they were split.
3 on the board, 3 on the lath, roo on the floor.
He might have jumped down from either.
HOWEVER…
There was zero poop on or under the board, plenty under the lath.
So I’m thinking they roosted overnight as per usual & woke to start testing the board.
I’ll keep reporting back here
Now, off to that FB page to let the pearlclutchers know of the experiment

[Simkie]

One night does not indicate much of anything at all. Like most animals, they’re creatures of habit.

[ParadoxFarm]

I read this title really fast and wonder what a Chicken Peeping Hole was.

[2DogsFarm]

Used by chickens for Stealth Stinkeye?

[MorganMaresVT]

I’ve always used flat 2x4s. Living in New England, it gets very cold, I buy the argument that a flat, wide roost gives them room to really lay down over their toes and keep them warm while roosting. I have never had frostbitten toes, and stopped getting large comb breeds because I felt awful seeing them get frostbite on the tips of their comb. I don’t heat my coop, and it seems to stay about 10-15F warmer than outside temps (was 12F in coop this morning while -2*F outside). As they’ve gotten older (all my girls are 10 yrs old right now), I’ve noticed that some of them seem to leave the roost overnight and nestle down in the shavings on the floor until morning. I figure at this point, they will do whatever they darn well please since it’s worked this long!

[ParadoxFarm]

That must be it!!

[Mosey_2003]

The flat 2x4 is better for them. Whether they have any sense about it is debatable, lol.

My big Barred Rocks are perfectly happy to use their 2x4s. The Leghorns and Easter Eggers only care about being as high as possible. I’m taking this into consideration when I start building my new coop this spring.