Our new chickens are funny little ladies. There are 6 Light Brahmas and 5 Auracana-Americanas, and they have decided they don't like to leave the chicken hen house. I'm not sure why, because their little run is a nice place, too. Perhaps because we've had almost non-stop rain ever since they were moved into the coop - they simply don't want to venture out in case it's raining or storming, as it usually is! 

Lately, we've taken it upon ourselves to acclimate them better to the outdoors. We check on them several times a day, haul them out of the coop and try to get them to act like chickens! Peck something! Eat a worm! We have discovered that they love mulberries, and our mulberry tree has produced a record crop this spring. While the kids eat some for themselves, they toss some to the chickens too. 

We're also trying to get them used to having us around them. Some are more skittish than others.

I tried to entice them outdoors with some mango peel and nice leafy compost scraps! 

I was reading on a Backyard Chicken forum that others have had this issue, too. Apparently, I'm not the only one with agorophobic hens. My next trick is to block access to the henhouse and make them spend more time in the run and outside. They will obviously have access to their food and water, but there's no reason I can see for hunkering up inside all day. It's not like that box is air-conditioned! Plus, their nesting boxes are getting mites, which happens when they don't take their dirt baths regularly. I suppose, in their defense, it's difficult to flop around in dust when it rains every day.

They are not laying yet. I'm expecting eggs towards the first of July. The Light Brahmas lay brown eggs, but the Auracanas will lay pastel colored eggs. I'm ready!