Egg Laying

[MamaHen8]

Hi friends,
So, i've already posted about my girls not laying yet... well i stuck those porcelin eggs in there and it's almost like they think there toys. i put hay under their roost bar and in there nesting boxes along with the fake eggs and they just scratch them out.... any other suggestions for what i can put in there boxes and what to do about the fake eggs? Thank you!

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don’t know what others told you about when they lay. I had an 18 week old start yesterday. I’ve had some take nine months to start to lay. There is no magic age when chickens start to lay, regardless of breed or anything else. It’s an individual chicken thing, they start to lay when they start to lay. I fully understand that you want them to start, it’s very frustrating waiting for that first egg, but it will come.

If they are scratching the bedding and/or fake eggs out of the nest, try raising the lip on the nest. That’s how I solved that problem. I don’t know what your nests look like but I like at least a 5” lip on mine.

There could be two reasons they are scratching the bedding and eggs out of the nests. One, they like to scratch around in things looking for food. That’s just what chickens do. But often about a week before they start to lay they start looking for a good nest. Part of that is scratching to see if they can form a nest. I’m not telling you that they are going to be laying within a week, these things do not come with guarantees, but it is actually a good sign.

Many of us use hay for bedding. It works great, as do many other things used as bedding. But if the lip is really low they’ll scratch out about anything you use. I sincerely doubt your problem is which bedding you are using, I think it is your nest design. A photo could help with that though since I’m only guessing. But it looks like you have identified a problem before they start to lay. That’s good timing so you can fix it.

 

[MamaHen8]

I don’t know what others told you about when they lay. I had an 18 week old start yesterday. I’ve had some take nine months to start to lay. There is no magic age when chickens start to lay, regardless of breed or anything else. It’s an individual chicken thing, they start to lay when they start to lay. I fully understand that you want them to start, it’s very frustrating waiting for that first egg, but it will come.

If they are scratching the bedding and/or fake eggs out of the nest, try raising the lip on the nest. That’s how I solved that problem. I don’t know what your nests look like but I like at least a 5” lip on mine.

There could be two reasons they are scratching the bedding and eggs out of the nests. One, they like to scratch around in things looking for food. That’s just what chickens do. But often about a week before they start to lay they start looking for a good nest. Part of that is scratching to see if they can form a nest. I’m not telling you that they are going to be laying within a week, these things do not come with guarantees, but it is actually a good sign.

Many of us use hay for bedding. It works great, as do many other things used as bedding. But if the lip is really low they’ll scratch out about anything you use. I sincerely doubt your problem is which bedding you are using, I think it is your nest design. A photo could help with that though since I’m only guessing. But it looks like you have identified a problem before they start to lay. That’s good timing so you can fix it.

yeah, all 3 of my girls are almost 23 weeks! haha! thank you so so much. that helped me out more then you know. my nests definitely don't have that 5" lift, so i will have to add that and see what happens! i really enjoy using the hay because it way easier to clean up, especially under their roost bar. well they've also been scratching since they were babies haha!! so hopefully that is a good sign, or they just like to scratch like every other chicken. i will try that 5" lift on the boxes, and maybe try more hay or something. Thank you so much again!! It really means a lot!