Chickens Prefer Only One Coop

[Bruthabuz]

Our young chickens only lay eggs in one coop, not the other. Will it help if I put some of the eggs from the one coop in the nesting boxes in the other to encourage them to lay eggs there?

 

[Kiki]

Can you get a couple of pictures of each of your coops?
I'm guessing one coop might be a little bit too small or not ventilated enough for their liking and it may be too hot for them.

 

[Bruthabuz]

Strangely enough, they prefer the smaller, boxier coop. I have two large doors on hinges that I close at night. They lay eggs on the upper level only, Sorry I don't have any pictures of the other coop after I finished it (yet), but you get the idea. They do not lay any eggs in it, but many chickens roost in it at night. Maybe it's too large, they don't feel safe? IDK. I built both of these. The smaller one was kind of an emergency put-together after we got more chickens than we intended.

 

[RojoMarz]

Sorry, I'm not understanding the problem. Is it that you just want them to lay in the other coop's nest boxes and not the ones they are using?

How many chickens do you have. There looks to be lots of nest boxes for them to choose from.

Chickens seem to like to do what everyone else does...once a pullet lays in coop A's nest box, all the other pullets decide they have to do the same.

 

[Bruthabuz]

Sorry, I'm not understanding the problem. Is it that you just want them to lay in the other coop's nest boxes and not the ones they are using?

How many chickens do you have. There looks to be lots of nest boxes for them to choose from.

Chickens seem to like to do what everyone else does...once a pullet lays in coop A's nest box, all the other pullets decide they have to do the same.

I guess it's not really a problem unless the chickens have to wait in line to use two or three or four nesting boxes when there are 20-25 available. We have 36 chickens, all just under 5 months old. I was just curious. If they do not want to lay eggs in the other coop, I may as well take the nesting boxes out if they're not going to use them. If it's their habit to all use the same boxes, so be it, I'll let them. I guess I don't think like a chicken! Thanks!

 

[Bruthabuz]

See what I mean?

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Unfortunately, chickens will choose their favorite nesting boxes, and they are creatures of habit. Once they start doing something, it’s very hard to get them to stop. And nest box fighting can be bad, as I’m sure you’re realizing, with stressed hens and broken eggs. Is there any way you can take the nests out of the little coop, to force them to use the bigger ones? How many nests are in the little coop? The minimum number is one per every three to four hens, I’ve heard, and with 36, you’d need nine to twelve nest boxes. Of course, this won’t stop them from laying in their favorite box, but maybe there will be enough for them each to have a favorite! Lol. Chickens are such funny animals sometimes. Do you have some fake eggs or golf balls you can put in the nests they won’t lay in? Sometimes, if you’re out there and they’re sitting in a box waiting to lay their egg, you can move them to a new spot and they’ll settle down. That’s what I did to teach my hens to lay in the boxes. It takes a very patient person though, because the hen will not want to stay there. You have to keep putting her back in, until she gets too fed up and sits there without fighting.

 

[Bruthabuz]

Unfortunately, chickens will choose their favorite nesting boxes, and they are creatures of habit. Once they start doing something, it’s very hard to get them to stop. And nest box fighting can be bad, as I’m sure you’re realizing, with stressed hens and broken eggs. Is there any way you can take the nests out of the little coop, to force them to use the bigger ones? How many nests are in the little coop? The minimum number is one per every three to four hens, I’ve heard, and with 36, you’d need nine to twelve nest boxes. Of course, this won’t stop them from laying in their favorite box, but maybe there will be enough for them each to have a favorite! Lol. Chickens are such funny animals sometimes. Do you have some fake eggs or golf balls you can put in the nests they won’t lay in? Sometimes, if you’re out there and they’re sitting in a box waiting to lay their egg, you can move them to a new spot and they’ll settle down. That’s what I did to teach my hens to lay in the boxes. It takes a very patient person though, because the hen will not want to stay there. You have to keep putting her back in, until she gets too fed up and sits there without fighting.

Thanks! I'll try both of those ideas! I'll try moving the nest boxes out of the small coop and see if they will go to the big one as well as moving a sitting hen into the large one. The one where they're laying now is actually the smaller, more confined, and hotter (113 today) coop. If I were a chicken, I'd lay my eggs in a more comfortable spot! We have put a golf ball and eggs that have been laid into the larger, airier coop where they don't lay eggs, but it has never worked. We have eight boxes in the small coop where they lay, and ten boxes in the large coop. Thanks for the suggestions! I'll keep updating! I've included more pictures of both coops.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

Thanks! I'll try both of those ideas! I'll try moving the nest boxes out of the small coop and see if they will go to the big one as well as moving a sitting hen into the large one. The one where they're laying now is actually the smaller, more confined, and hotter (113 today) coop. If I were a chicken, I'd lay my eggs in a more comfortable spot! We have put a golf ball and eggs that have been laid into the larger, airier coop where they don't lay eggs, but it has never worked. We have eight boxes in the small coop where they lay, and ten boxes in the large coop. Thanks for the suggestions! I'll keep updating! I've included more pictures of both coops.

Hmm. I don’t know why they’d like the smaller coop better, unless it has more airflow. Is there any ventilation on the larger one? I see the smaller one has some vents on top, which is crucial in this hot weather.

 

[Bruthabuz]

If anything, the smaller coop has less airflow/ventilation. In fact, I'm thinking about putting more holes in. The larger coop has a monitor-style roof, so the ventilation is open along the entire length of the roof.

Anyway, I was successful in moving a few of the chickens that were looking for a box in the smaller coop into the larger one and shut them in. As you suggested, they were not happy. I moved one of the 3-gallon waterers into the coop and turned a sprinkler on it to keep it and them cool. I also removed the boxes from the smaller coop.

I'm waiting now to see what happens!