Bedtime. Or not...

Whilst Betty was convalesing in the house, Reggie and Brick were getting to grips with the new coop.


They liked being outside, had test-run the garden often and liked the coop; although they were not so sure about 'upstairs'.


I would find them staring up the ramp just before bedtime, then at bedtime they would be roosting -  huddled in a corner of the run.  This meant I had to crawl into the run, through the VERY SMALL door and lift them up into the coop.


This was not ideal.


A couple of weeks into this scenario, I was browsing the internet looking for suggestions on how to make my reluctant chickens go to bed and came upon the suggestion of a light.  A night light for chickens - wonderful!


I went to B&Q and a 'stick-on LED' was duly bought and positioned in the coop.


Dusk fell, the light was on and my little troop, peered up the ramp and could see that there was nothing in there that was likely to eat them.  Safe in this knowledge, the peering continued.  It continued for quite a while.  In fact it continued to the point where I decided to go and make a cup of tea.  When I came back, obviously they were gone.

Despite previous suggestions, they do not have a TV in there.

A quick run up the garden confirmed that they had indeed ascended the ramp, on the first night of using a light!  I can't explain how pleased I was not to be crawling about trying to grab alarmed chickens in the fading light.




The next night Betty re-joined my little flock.  As the light faded she marched up to the coop, jumped up the ramp and hopped into bed.  The light wasn't even on...