Gold Laced Wyandots are laying on run floor.

[Allilang]

Of my 10 birds I have 2 gold laced Wyandots who are super late layers. They just started to lay, and one or both seem to be laying in the middle of the run. All my amberlinks and australorps are good girls laying in their 3 nesting boxes making use of different ones every day. I know the Wyandots are bottom of the pecking order. Is their any advice you could give to correct their behavior? Should they start to figure it out on their own? The 3 boxes are all in the coop, even though I really don't want one there, would adding one in the run help?

 

[nuthatched]

Are you sure the eggs aren't getting stuck to bum fluff and carried outside?

 

[U_Stormcrow]

They should figure it out on their own. I have "a couple" chickens, hatched constantly all last year, so was constantly having birds come into maturity. It was (and is) quite common for birds to lay eggs in the wrong place a few times as their plumbing works the kinks out and they adapt to this new function. With other mature birds to show her the way, she should fall into line w/i a week.

Or so my experience suggests.

 

[SandyRiverChick]

How long and what time? I always find a few on the floor in the morning when they first start. But they're at least "in," the coop not the run. The 1 or 2 time's in the past that I've found an egg in the run seem's to be an odd one-off where they grow out of it. I wouldn't put a box in the run because 3 should be plenty for 10birds. They're probably going to lay, seeing someone who is mean in the box and giving up (that's when I've found them on the floor just outside of a box.) I think they do prefer the box though and will eventually figure out how to take their turn. Hope so!

 

[Allilang]

Its only been 2 days.

My neighbor came to steal eggs yesterday and told me she found a tiny fairy egg on the ground in the run, then I found another one this morning, so it hasn't been long. All the other chickens figured it out right away. The only mistake one made was laying one from a roosting bar with no shell. I don't see how it could be stuck to their bum. They all have clean down feathered butts.

Pecking order and Box location shouldn't be a problem?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Its only been 2 days.

My neighbor came to steal eggs yesterday and told me she found a tiny fairy egg on the ground in the run, then I found another one this morning, so it hasn't been long. All the other chickens figured it out right away. The only mistake one made was laying one from a roosting bar with no shell.

Not at all unusual for new layers to not know where to lay, or struggle with timing (so they'll not make it to nests in time, or exit early before they lay).

I don't see how it could be stuck to their bum. They all have clean down feathered butts.

Unlikely it's sticking to their bums as that's not the norm, but when it does happen it's due to something like the egg having a lot of bloom or bloom is drying too slowly + a particularly fluffy behind.

 

[aart]

They'll figure it out.
Might help to put one fake egg in every nest.

 

[Allilang]

I have a trash can in the run that holds their treats in it. They like to perch on it and are laying the eggs there. Last egg was laid from a roosting bar last night...