Encouraging use of the nest boxes.....

[imthedude]

My 9 girls are hopefully close to the point of lay (3 @ 20 wks and 6 @ 18 wks). I've read of the golf ball and fake egg tricks to get them to lay reliably in their nest boxes and hopefully those work, but if they are used to free ranging some during the day, will they return to their nests routinely to lay? I don't want to be hunting for stray eggs all over our yard.....

 

[chicmom]

You may want to keep them locked up until around 5 or 6 pm for a while. This will get them started laying in the boxes, and once they're doing it routinely, then you can let them out more often. Otherwise, you will be doing the egg hunt......

 

[RM44]

I would recommend using the golf balls/fake eggs/oval shaped stones, etc., in the nest boxes and also keeping the chickens confined to the coop (and or coop and run if attached) until you get a few laying in the box. Then allow the free ranging again once they learn to use the box.

 

[Di]

Once my girls were old enough to start laying, I stopped allowing them to free range. I kept them in their coop and run until I was sure they were all used to the nesting box routine. Some breeds didn't start laying as early as others, but I figured the late-bloomers would pick up what others were doing, so I started letting them free range in the afternoon. Once all of them started laying, they went back to free ranging the whole day and each would return to the coop to lay then go back out and join the others.