Would adding a light with a timer give them longer time to lay instead of dropping them from the roost?
Are they new layers? You might want to put an egg in the nest boxes to give them the idea. Lighting could be an issue....When it's dark, a chicken doesn't move or eat or anything......They stay put. Here in Ohio, it's dark in the morning, and it's dark very early. I have a light in my coops, and I turn it on before work (around 7am), and I turn it off around 9pm. That also helps keep them laying throughout the winter months, because they need a good 14 hours of light in order to keep laying good.
