Do hens instinctively get into the nesting box?

[Tarahtori]

My first flock, 5 chickens, is now 18 wks old & we're trying to get ready for egg laying. Will the chickens just get in the hay lined nesting boxes or is there something special I need to do? Thank you in advance.

 

[Tonyroo]

Throw a golf ball in each nest. They usually understand what that means.

 

[Tarahtori]

Okay...my smart husband did that a couple of days ago. Thank you for the #ProTip

 

[Sussex19]

A bit of both, they can be very good at working it out, but some have a harder time. Putting something egg shaped in really does help a lot!

 

[Mr Spot]

My first flock, 5 chickens, is now 18 wks old & we're trying to get ready for egg laying. Will the chickens just get in the hay lined nesting boxes or is there something special I need to do? Thank you in advance.

Amazon had ceramic nest eggs in brown and white, they come 6 to a package, that's what I got this year. They work.

 

[Tonyroo]

My first flock, 5 chickens, is now 18 wks old & we're trying to get ready for egg laying. Will the chickens just get in the hay lined nesting boxes or is there something special I need to do? Thank you in advance.

What breeds do you have?

 

[Tarahtori]

What breeds do you have?

We have 2 Rhode Islands, 2 Barred Rocks & an Easter Egger

 

[3KillerBs]

Amazon had ceramic nest eggs in brown and white, they come 6 to a package, that's what I got this year. They work.

I was tempted by those.

I like golf balls, however, because I can tell them from eggs by touch when rummaging around under a broody.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Will the chickens just get in the hay lined nesting boxes or is there something special I need to do?

Nothing you haven't already done. You never know where they will actually lay and you can't force them, just try to influence them. You've done that with the fake eggs and having the nests available to them.

Many pullets seem to know an egg is coming and will start to look for a nest maybe a week before it gets there. Having your nests open and with a fake egg in them is about the best you can do. At least your nests will be considered when they are deciding where to lay.

Some pullets seem surprised by that first egg and may drop it anywhere, from the roosts if it comes at night or just walking around so don't get too concerned if you see that. They usually get those kinks out of their egg laying process within a few days. If you consistently see the eggs in the same spot then that's where they have decided to make their nest.

If you run into issues when they start laying get back to us with details of what is going on. We can chat. But with what you have done I think you have a good chance of being OK.