Chicken Rant! Stopping coop laying and chicken chores while pregnant.

[Hatrick]

GRRR! Chicken chores in the winter suck! My hands froze today while trying to clean out the filthy disaster that has become of the coop, which has been blocked by snow for the last week. We use DE but these three birds are pooing machines!!!

My one BR waited until 30 weeks to start laying and then when she did, she layed in the coop instead of the nest box, so for some reason the other two, who had been laying in the nest boxes for about 10 weeks by that point, seemed to think it was A GREAT IDEA, and they joined in with this FRUSTRATING HABIT! They dig a little hole in the shavings on the floor of the coop and lay eggs there. Egg laying has all but stopped at this point except for the random egg that I find (on the floor) so it's hard to catch them doing it when it's only every few days or so! How can I break this habit?! It's driving me crazy!!

As well, I know there is concern with cleaning out cat litter boxes while pregnant, but what about chicken coops (what a way to get out of it...

) We use DE in the coop but besides that is there any issues that I should worry about cocerning chickens and pregnancy?

Thanks!

 

[Katy]

I did chicken chores with all of mine.....course I also still did the litter box too.

 

[agnes_day]

i think its fine...and even the litter box is fine as long as you dont run your hands through it and not wash them.

 

[the simple life]

You can still do the coop stuff while pregnant, think of all the farmer's wives over the years.
As far as getting them to stop laying on the floor, maybe go a couple of days without shavings on the floor so they can't make a nest to lay in and see if you can break them of it.

 

[Hatrick]

i think its fine...and even the litter box is fine as long as you dont run your hands through it and not wash them.

LOL! Mmm. And then make myself a sandwich...

 

[Hatrick]

As far as getting them to stop laying on the floor, maybe go a couple of days without shavings on the floor so they can't make a nest to lay in and see if you can break them of it.

Oooo! Good idea! Although I did just put fresh shavings in there today, maybe I'll find a piece of plywood and stick it on top. The nest boxes are now full of fresh clean straw so hopefully that will entice my little renegade! Thanks!​

 

[riftnreef]

The whole keeping a fake egg in the nest box may be a simple fix. Golf ball if nothing else. Creatures of urges, chickens are...and they seem to be compeled to do what the other birds are doing at any give time...so if they see a "laid" egg in the box, that is where they will want to put theirs...not to be outdone of course.

 

[Uzuri]

If you want a little extra piece of mind while you're expecting, just get yourself a particle mask to wear while doing chores, and of course watch your step just like you do anywhere else to avoid falling and that sort of risk. Actually, we probably all should behave ourselves and protect our lungs, whatever our situation, but yeah, right...

Golf balls brought mine in to the box. I now have one who, if confronted with the block that I put up at night to keep the rooster from sleeping in the next boxes, MUST stick her head through the wire and roll out a golf ball to sit on if she can't wait for me to come open the boxes before laying. She's silly.

 

[agnes_day]

Quote:
LOL! Mmm. And then make myself a sandwich...

oh god...one of my sons..years ago, he had a puppy and of course he wasnt house trained..anyways, he was cleaning up the puppys "mess" while eating a sandwich!!!!!

i about died!!

 

[bonnylass79]

I actually did ask my OB about this. She said cat poo is the only one to be concerned with. If your skin comes in contact with fecal matter or anything that has touched fecal matter, then you run a risk of absorbing the bacteria that can affect the baby. Can't remember the name of it. She didn't know of anything I could contract by cleaning chicken coops, horse stalls or picking up after the dogs. My life is just full of poo.