Hen laying from roost....

[snow5164]

Also do you have a dim light in the coop? Mine have a night light so they can see a bit

 

[Northern Flights]

We too are recently finding ourselves in need of a deposit when the bank is not yet open. Fortunately we have a "chicken cam" inside the coop and I watched it happen this morning. Today was the second day in a row an egg was rolled off the assembly line before the lights came on. I put it down to the time changes going on up here, with daylight vanishing faster than funds from our joint account.

Over August alone we have lost 2+ hours and it continues in earnest. Here too. This morning's egg was dropped onto the poop board from only 6 inches, but it was enough to smash the pointy end in and render it dog food. I am going to spread litter on the poop boards and try to cushion the blow. I remain hopeful our fine feathered family members get with the program, eventually. I suspect they hold me directly responsible for all this daylight change malarkey, but there is no point trying to reason with them. They never listen. Blasted birds.

edit: As for a nightlight, we already have a very low wattage incandescent lamp on a timer that I have been rolling forward in sync with the real world, but I shall wind it back to just before the time Big Lizzy feels the need to evacuate her passenger. Its a light I am using to simulate dawn, followed by a 800 lumen LED 10 to 15 minutes later. Rolling the times forward with natural light was a fool's attempt at encouraging moulting before the snow/ice/-40 switch gets thrown — likely any moment now...

 

[snow5164]

I’m getting one to two soft ones on the poop boards ,

I’m wondering if it’s because we give them watermelon everyday ? Just the rinds but they eat it to the shell...

Or because we added ducks as their neighbors?

Not sure I wish they would give me a hint

 

[Northern Flights]

Well, I am certainly no chicken expert, nor anything even approaching a sensible human being really, but our hens react to just about anything different by launching their ordnance either at different times or in different places. Lets face it: Chickens are diabolical. It's no wonder they get eaten so often. Not that I could ever eat another, now that I have my girls. I better not get a cow or something or I'll have to take up eating salads.