help.. new nest box and no eggs!

[Minnie417]

first time chicken owner. we have 4 hens, all about 21 weeks old. 2 of the hens have been laying for about a month, within the past week we have had 4 eggs a couple times so everyone has laid at least one egg. yesterday we just reconstructed the coop so the inside is open with a roosting bar and made a nesting box where a door had previously been. they were sleeping/laying in the same back corner so this was to try and give them a bigger roost and a separate place to lay eggs. by 830, we usually have the first two eggs but there is none so far today. i am afraid this is confusing them and they will hold their eggs in and get messed up. any tips or advice?! (i did place a golf ball inside the nesting box) i've seen two in it at different times but just go in, and scratch the wood chips and go out. attached is a photo of the coop/new nesting box(still needs finishing touches, just did all this yesterday) and attached is a 12x12 run. we do let them free range for at least an hour or more a day.

 

[Kat2141]

did you check the rest of the coop? they may have laid them somewhere else or they are just a little late due to the change... it takes mine a little time to accept a change... unless it is something they want LOL … like when I moved their favorite horse feed bucket into their stall so they could use that to lay in... now they ignore the nest boxes and wait in line to use the bucket LOL

 

[slordaz]

Chickens are creatures of habit any change can throw them off for a bit, add in they are new layers they are still working kinks out. Most breeds don't lay every single day either. I would recommend putt them where you want them to lay with a golf ball or fake egg to show them that's where they now lay

 

[SueT]

As it takes at least 25 hours for an egg to develop, laying will not be at the same time each day unless they skip a day. If I want to introduce a new nest box, I start putting their actual eggs in it, besides fake eggs. Take the first egg of the day and put it in the new box. Next hens come along and think, "Oh, everyone's laying here now, I will too." You may have luck with that. I have even brought yesterday's eggs back out and put in the nest to encourage this. Remove at end of day.
Good luck!

 

[Chebird]

We have 21 pullets and 10 nest boxes, 5 of which were recently built. Of course, everyone wants a few of the old nest boxes. We often get 4 eggs in one box. Some pullets will even stand outside the old boxes singing the egg song and peering in a box that already has two chickens in it (encouraging them to lay and GET OUT!) We are hoping that as other pullets mature, they will choose the new boxes. You can lead a chicken to a new nest box but . . . . .