HI! I am worried that when my girls start to lay, that they will lay somewhere outside! If you leave your coop door open will they go in by themselves to lay? I don't want my dog to find their eggs outside and eat them! Or should I leave them in the coop a little later for them to lay? Thanks so much!
I've heard some people say they keep them in the coop until they lay, but it depends when they lay. Mine free range over a large 2 acre property and have a barn to go into. They just started laying and always come back to the barn to lay in old troughs (I've read they like dark, hidden places). But mine haven't been laying until late afternoon. You will just have to wait until they start and see what happens. I have heard of hens laying outside though so just make sure they have a good nesting box. Good luck!
Mine stayed in the coop and run until they had been laying for a few months. Then we felt set up for them to free range. The hens come back to the nesting box to lay. I say that because we still have eggs in the box daily and I haven't found any strays out in the yard. Chris
Most of my large flock lay eggs in the coop nest boxes. I do have four BCM/Silkie gals -sisters - who hide nests and go broody on 'em, though. Not too awful for fifty-ish hens... The flock ranges freely over two-thirds of an acre. The Penelopes (those four identical BCM/Silkie hens) make nests close to the house and coop, so I don't have to hunt much for 'em, though.
I put fake eggs in the nesting boxes and my girls have all layed in the boxes every time, even though we let them free range. They go back to the coop and lay then run back out to join the flock.