I had a polish pullet that laid in the exact same location, she actually dug out the area under the ramp leading to the pop door, so I always had to look for eggs there.
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I think you're right. Even if the nestboxes aren't occupied, another hen may be bullying her out of using the boxes. I have a new batch of pullets just starting to lay right now, and I noticed one of the older hens trying to keep one of the younger girls out of the nestboxes altogether. The bully hen was the lowest ranking of the older girls, by the way, not the top hen.
Our Sizzle, Sunshine, lays her daily egg under our back steps. Every day, rain our shine, never fail. she trods her feathery butt up to the main house all the way up from the barn to leave us a nice fresh egg at the back door under the stairs. Then she goes back down to the barn.
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I think you're right. Even if the nestboxes aren't occupied, another hen may be bullying her out of using the boxes. I have a new batch of pullets just starting to lay right now, and I noticed one of the older hens trying to keep one of the younger girls out of the nestboxes altogether. The bully hen was the lowest ranking of the older girls, by the way, not the top hen.
Yea, I'll bet this is what is happening, the one who is doing this is on the bottom, she gets her food stolen straight from under her beak!