Laying in the wrong location

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flashmayo

flashmayo

Hatching
Feb 15, 2015
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Hi All,

I'm pretty new to this, and have had 5 1 year old hens for about 3 weeks now. (Ginger, Maryann, Jan, Marsha, and Rosie). I built them a nice coop with externally accessable laying boxes. The coop is pretty light inside with a 2ft by 2ft window and a stained glass window on two of the walls. Early on, without really thinking about, I opened the cover to the laying box while one f them was in there. In total I've seen only about 4 eggs being layed in the box. I was confused and thought they were still adjusting to their new surroundings and not yet laying, when I found 5 eggs outside the coop, under a old stairway I built for a trampoline that used to be in the spot that the coop is in now. It's nice and dark in there, surrounded on 3 sides by plywood.
Long story a bit shorter, how do I get them to start laying in the nesting box rather than under the stairway? Shut out more of the light to the nesting box location? Remove the stair unit? Both?

John
 
Does your nesting box have hay in them ??? Have to ask. Chickens like a peaceful quiet place to lay their eggs. The hay or straw bedding in the nest box gives them comfort as well. Leave some eggs in the nesting box and they may get the idea to go and lay there. I read that peeps put wooden eggs to train their chickens. I never had to do that. Try putting a curtain over the window so the light is less direct. That may work.
idunno.gif
.. Removing the stair unit or making it not accessible would also work. This way they have no place to go except nest box.
WISHING YOU BEST.
thumbsup.gif
 
Hens lay eggs to perpetuate the species. Therefor they prefer to lay in locations that aid and support the incubation and development of eggs or chicken fetuses.

Dark, quite, secluded, out of the way, protected, isolated, and safe areas are those kinds of places. ESPECIALLY when the nest location is in contact with the Earth so that the eggs can maintain a cool enough temp to forestall early development until the hen begins to set in earnest and the natural humidity from Mother Earth can aid in both preserving the viability of the eggs until the hen takes to her nest while helping keep the humidity up when the hen goes into lock down mode just prior to hatching.

Therefor windows in a hen house that is not occupied 24/7 are counterproductive to any given hen laying in any specific nest box.

Only the teeming population of a commercial egg operation makes nest boxes seem like a hens' best option to lay eggs and hatch chicks.
 
Last edited:
chickengeorgeto said:
Hens lay eggs to perpetuate the species. Therefor they prefer to lay in locations that aid and support the incubation and development of eggs or chicken fetuses.

Dark, quite, secluded, out of the way, protected, isolated, and safe areas are those kinds of places. ESPECIALLY when the nest location is in contact with the Earth so that the eggs can maintain a cool enough temp to forestall early development until the hen begins to set in earnest and the natural humidity from Mother Earth can aid in both preserving the viability of the eggs until the hen takes to her nest while helping keep the humidity up when the hen goes into lock down mode just prior to hatching.

Therefor windows in a hen house that is not occupied 24/7 are counterproductive to any given hen laying in any specific nest box.

Only the teeming population of a commercial egg operation makes nest boxes seem like a hens' best option to lay eggs and hatch chicks.
Click to expand...

What I have not seen anyone address yet is how a "NEST" shaped hen nest results in the eggs all resting in an air cell upward position somewhat like the position of the eggs in an automatic turning forced air incubator.
 
chickengeorgeto said:
Hens lay eggs to perpetuate the species.  Therefor they prefer to lay in locations that aid and support the incubation and development of eggs or chicken fetuses.  

Dark, quite, secluded, out of the way, protected, isolated, and safe areas are those kinds of places.  ESPECIALLY when the nest location is in contact with the Earth so that the eggs can maintain a cool enough temp to forestall early development until the hen begins to set in earnest and the natural humidity from Mother Earth can aid in both preserving the viability of the eggs until the hen takes to her nest while helping keep the humidity up when the hen goes into lock down mode just prior to hatching. 

Therefor windows in a hen house that is not occupied 24/7 are counterproductive to any given hen laying in any specific nest box. 

Only the teeming population of a commercial egg operation makes nest boxes seem like a hens' best option to lay eggs and hatch chicks.
Click to expand...
That is well put. I get it now. Beneath the stairs provides all of the things on the hens' list. It's dark, safe feeling, compact, and on the ground, where it does stay cool. The window is for ventilation, but I can look into some shade or a venetian blind, or perhaps a louvre. See how they like that.
Thanks for the eloquent explanation.

John
 

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