Help! My coop makes my chickens poo in their nesting boxes!!!

[meckler]

I have two coops: one I built, which is well constructed and extremely functional, and one I bought from a builder near my home. The one I purchased from the builder has a horrible design flaw! The roosts are right beside the nesting boxes and the chickens sleep in/poop in their nesting boxes!

In the coop we built, we have the nesting boxes around ground level and the roosts up pretty high. They NEVER poop in their nesting boxes and the coop is very easy to clean. I need some ideas for fixing my pooping problem!

We thought of removing the roosts and repositioning them, but it may be difficult for the chickens to get into the nesting boxes without the roost area there. Also, they may still go up there and sleep in the nesting boxes.

I thought of placing individual nesting boxes on the floor area, but then Id have to go inside the coop to collect the eggs, and there is not a whole lot of room to place boxes on the floor.

The most extreme fix we've thought of is to remove the current nesting boxes, cut a new area to reposition the boxes lower than the roosts and patch up the old nesting box area. This would leave the roosts above the nesting boxes where they probably wouldn't sleep/poop in them...

Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[Tumbling K]

yep, lower them.

or install a poop board, and build new nesting boxes below them. make it a pain to get the eggs tho.

I can't tell from the pics, but you may be able to remove the roost on the left, and put new nesting boxes there, but lower. then remove the bottoms to the existing nesting boxes, and add roost bars.

 

[ECBW]

The nests are ok. I have the same setup. Nests on the floor take up precious floor space.

Why not Raise the roost on the other side? It can be 6" higher and makes all the difference. My birds are fine with 16" clearance b/n roost and ceiling.

And/Or another roost under the peak. As soon as they see a higher perch, they will use the nest perch as a spring board and not sleep on it.

 

[meckler]

Great idea! Thank you!

 

[Hokum Coco]

The roosts are right beside the nesting boxes and the chickens sleep in/poop in their nesting boxes!

Nest boxes
In my nest boxes I fold a feed bag to fit (nest boxes are 1 ft³). When a bag gets soiled; fold a new one; pop out the soiled; pop in the new. Feed bags are a nylon mesh bag.
Frozen poop just peels off in below freezing temperatures and just flakes off in summer when left out in the sun to bake and dry.

I have 65 trips around the sun it is the best method I have stumbled upon.

Make sure the twine is removed from the open end of the bag it can get tangled around your birds.