Chicken ark- the girls keep roosting in the side nest boxes!

[chick4chix]

I got my first egg!! I got it on thursday today is Sat and I got another!
I have not gotten around to putting the 2x4 on the roost- I just kept blocking the boxes at night and opening in the morning. I did not block them Thurs night or last night since one laid an egg. No one was roosting in there- can they have figured it out that fast after one egg? I think it's my SLW at 21.5 weeks that laid them both- all the others are taking turns going up and kicking around but nothing from them yet- I can hardly wait to see the EE's eggs!

Here they both are in all their glory

 

[patman75]

 

[GwenDellAnno]

Sweet!!!!! Finally eh? (OK, I'm Canadian!!) I think just keeping the nest boxes blocked for long enough likely convinced them that the roost was "fun". At least that's what happened in my case.

Gwen

 

[chick4chix]

Thanks Gwen- Yes that appears to be the case- I checked this morning and the nests were still clean. No egg yet today but she skipped one day after the first darling egg so perhaps she'll skip another?
I can hardly wait til they all start laying and to see the EE's eggs. There is something almost magical about opening the box and seeing that perfect egg sitting there. I almost want to bronze that first egg- like my kids baby shoes... just kidding...

About the "eh" Lol! - two of my best friends here in SoCal are from Canada

 

[chick4chix]

Well I spoke too soon- tonight I went out to pull up the ladder and couldn't hear anything - so I peered into the one nest box and couldn't see anyone on the roost- all the way down to the other side. I walked around and opened that box and ALL SIX standard sized girls were JAMMED and I mean, jammed into that nest box.

I lifted them off one by one and set them back into the roosting area- where they quickly walked down to the other nest box. I kept encouraging them until they finally settled-I didn't want to block because my SLW has been laying early in the morning sometimes before I let the ladder down so I think I am going to try the 2x4" roost pole after all.

I've gotten 4 eggs so far and no one has roosted in the nest box all week, so I thought my problems were over- ha.

 

[chick4chix]

I posted them being jammed into the nest box now- and since at least one of them is laying, I didn't want to block anymore so DH put a 2x4" flat side up on top of the roost that was already there. So now it's a couple of inches higher than the nests and the old roost. I just went out to tuck them in for the night thinking they were going to be all cozy on the newer wider roost...and yep... all jammed into one nest again.

Maybe it will just take some time

I'm getting tired of this- not sure what else to do now because I don't want to block if they are laying?

 

[SOchick]

I am having the same problem with mine again too. I blocked off the nest boxes and that solved it for a week or so, and now they are back in the nest boxes

But they are not laying like yours. I hope someone has some new ideas for us!

 

[chick4chix]

Hi Sochick- I had luck for about a nanosecond blocking during the day and opening in the morning,but now that one or possibly two are laying I'm afraid to do that anymore. I don't get why they like to all be on top of each other like that- six standard sized girls all bunched together with beaks and tails every which way- I can't believe it would be comfortable or that they could even breathe. They complain at me when I move them, but tonight I had to go back and forth (I have an ark) between the two boxes because they were playing ping pong with me ... sigh...
good luck with yours- I do hope someone will give us
the magic cure

 

[patman75]

Block the boxes before dusk and unblock them at dawn. Did that for almost 3 weeks, all good now.

OR.......

I have been think of adding an extension to the run to hold more chickens. ( I under estimated how addicting chickens can be) I was thinking of making the entire top to just be the roost with no nest boxes.

I would then add two nest boxes in the run extension. You could replace one the side doors with a door with 2 nest boxes in it.

The nest boxes will be much lower than the roost and the roost will hold more chickens.

No worries about the chickens sleeping in the nest boxes.

This will be my spring project. I figure with an extra 4X8 of grass/run ( for a total of 4X16) and the whole top to be a roost I think I will be able to fit 8 med-large chickens.

 

[chick4chix]

Thanks Patman- I guess I will need to get out there first thing in the morning. It's not that I'm not awake- it's just that I'm having my coffee and thinking about it for awhile

What did you block your boxes with and were they roosting in both boxes or just one? I was thinking of stapling some kind of curtain on the nest box opening to deter them from going in there until they needed to use it for real- has anyone tried anything like that?

I like your idea of using the entire top for the roost-post pix if you do it and let us know how it works.

I am thinking about hatching some silkies this winter and wanted DH to build me a really small ark just for them- I know what you mean about addicting- If I lived on acreage there would
be no stopping me