do you guys think they can control when they lay eggs. .

[OCeggs23]

The way I've understood it, it's like pooping. You can hold it in, but only for so long, and preferably not at all.

Hilarious!! This is the best way I've heard it put!

 

[ChickenNoobs]

Ok. That makes sense. So mine are just being stubborn little heffers that despise any slight change around the habitat or anywhere lol

mine must be the same. We're new at this and got 4 hens and 1 rooster when we bought our coop a couple of months ago so our relationships are still developing. Does anyone know typical signs to look for in their behavior and/or tips on how to thrive with this endeavor?

 

[PoppasGrill]

Our Ladies are creatures of habit. Once they get a spot they like laying , and it’s usually in , say, 3rd nesting box from the right, she will stand outside the box , if another hen is in there, and yell at her to hurry up. Or , if time is of the essence, she will climb in on top and lay her egg beside the occupying hen.
I’ve built a row of new nesting boxes and , after inspecting all of them, our hens will pick 2 or 3 that become the place to lay for all the other hens in that coop. Leaving the rest of the boxes to set empty.

 

[Just2chickens]

We sometimes take our chickens for a 6 hour roadtrip (after dark) when we are staying with family for a couple weeks, I have the same coop there, they have no trouble at all adjusting this way... One of them just searches for the lightblue door and she's home...
But one time we had to make the trip in the daytime, and one of them had to lay, so she started whining, wich she never does, so we stopped the car, and after 15 minutes she had layed her egg in the box we are transporting them in... Another one had already layed her egg while we were driving.