Hens don't like new coop!

[AuntieTamsBYC]

I hope I picked the right category because I need to know how to manage the hens. Bought a new coop with nesting boxes. The old coop didn't have them. The hens roosted and laid eggs in one place so I was excited to get the nesting boxes. But the ladies haven't found their way to the roosts and are laying, pooping and sleeping in the nesting boxes. I tied a head of lettuce to the roost and they did jump to eat it but didn't notice them actually using the roosts. How do I encourage them to find their way up there?

I wasn't able to remove the old coop because it's part of the fence. I will take it out soon but I did close it up so they can't get in. A couple of nights in a row I had to go out at dusk and physically pick them up from the ramp to the old coop and put them in the new coop. They were all 6 on the ramp cackling and cawing and so confused! Five of them are finding their way to the new coop at night, except for one, the oldest. I am guessing that once the old coop is gone that problem will be solved but if there is anything else I can do to acclimate the hens to the new coop, I'd love to hear it!

Egg production is way down. Only a couple of eggs since the new coop. Any advice would be welcome.

 

[lazy gardener]

Block off the nest boxes every night. Open them back up in the morning. What are the dimensions of the perches? How many birds?

 

[Mrs. K]

They hate change, ^^ is what I would do. An old milk jug filled with a bit of water to give it weight happens to fit nicely in my nests.

 

[AuntieTamsBYC]

I don't understand. An old milk jug in the nests does what? Keeps them from sleeping there? But will they lay there?

 

[sourland]

Put the milk jug in at night, and remove it in the morning.

 

[Bunnylady]

Familiar things are safe, anything new is scary and stressful. They will learn, just keep putting them where they now need to be - maybe even on the roosts. They usually prefer to sleep as high as they can get, but sometimes it takes a while before they "get it."

 

[JurassicBawk]

It may just be the angle of the photo, but those roosts look really thin to me. My chickens have a 2x4 as their roost post, with the 4" part on top so it's super wide for them. Even my bantams won't roost on anything less than 2" wide. That gives them stability and also allows them to cover their feet with their body and keep everything warm at night.

 

[Chickassan]

I'm not trying to be too critical but those roosts look uncomfortable.

 

[AuntieTamsBYC]

I think they are wide enough as they are the same as the old ones, except they are square instead of rounded. Might have to look into changing those.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

How many chickens are in there? What a terrible design, 4 nest boxes is enough for 16ish birds yet that coop is big enough for 4. Maybe there is a way to modify it, and by modify I mean enlarge it.

Good luck

Gary