Fake Eggs in Nesting Boxes-- Good Idea, Nah, or Meh?

[BlindLemonChicken]

I only use them when I have pullets and no grown hens to show them where to lay.

 

[Growley Monster]

I only use them when I have pullets and no grown hens to show them where to lay.

This flock started from scratch, no wise old hen to show the young pullets what to do. So I will use the counterfeit eggs. I have a half dozen white wooden ones arriving in a couple of days.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Also a fan of golf balls here as the dimpling means you can feel under a hen and differentiate them from eggs. Are there oddballs that WON'T lay in boxes that other birds use? Yes. I now leave one without any fakes. But the others definitely prefer the boxes with the fakes.

I did try to remove all the fakes at one point but one of my hens at the time was so upset by the missing "eggs" that she paced around in distress until I put them back, and then immediately hopped into the box.

 

[AshVau22]

I used fake eggs when I had all pullets. I don't know if it worked or helped. I'd like to think it did. They weren't cheap lol

 

[Debbie292d]

I guess when you have silkies, you don't need fake eggs as I've never needed them. They lay anywhere you will let them, and on nothing at all even. We put horse bedding pellets in our nests, and a couple of the hens scratch those away and lay on the plywood.

I feel left out of that, as fake eggs sound fun actually!