Hens laying wrong place

["Burd" house]

Sooo....im not the OCD chicken mom (although i am considered "that crazy chicken lady"), and usually dont mind where my hens are laying their eggs. I'm actually around them (32 hens/3 roosters) so much, that i know the spots my laidies choose and actually who likes to lay where. So its not some crazy easter egg hunt everyday.
But today, as i was cleaning out the coop, and installing a new roosting ladder, at the TOP of my coop, where the pitch of the roof starts to slant down, i found 45 NASTY eggs!!! I didnt think that hens would lay sooooo high (10 ft from coop floor to roof).
Most of my hens lay in their boxes (we have plenty), and some lay in their 2 favorite flower pots by my garage. But evidently some of my ladies are laying WAAAYYY UP HIGH

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

The sneakier the better. Glad you found them before they exploded. Mine like sneaking up in my hay bale stack to lay in the dark corner 30 feet up.

 

[PioPio76]

Mine lay in the bushes. Trying to get them to lay in the nesting boxes in their coop. It was recommended that I keep them in the coop until they lay in the nesting boxes. Have been there for a little over 24 hours and .... nothing. Have ceramic eggs I their boxes since before they started laying. NothingI even added foliage from the bush they were laying in into their nesting boxes and still nothing. Am I hurting them in anyway leaving them in their coop? If they don’t feel comfortable will they not lay even if they have too? Please help! Thank you for your time and support.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Mine lay in the bushes. Trying to get them to lay in the nesting boxes in their coop. It was recommended that I keep them in the coop until they lay in the nesting boxes. Have been there for a little over 24 hours and .... nothing. Have ceramic eggs I their boxes since before they started laying. NothingI even added foliage from the bush they were laying in into their nesting boxes and still nothing. Am I hurting them in anyway leaving them in their coop? If they don’t feel comfortable will they not lay even if they have too? Please help! Thank you for your time and support.

Do you have a run? You would need to keep them locked up for a week or better to retrain them. I wouldn't leave them locked in the coop long term unless it's large, they can start pecking each other under frustration.

 

[PioPio76]

Hello. Yes it is a large run it is 40 x 10 for 5 Delaware hens. Checking on them throughout the day and trying to keep the happy with treats. I will look into retraining them. Thanks for your input. Greatly appreciated.

 

[aart]

But today, as i was cleaning out the coop, and installing a new roosting ladder, at the TOP of my coop, where the pitch of the roof starts to slant down, i found 45 NASTY eggs!!! I didnt think that hens would lay sooooo high (10 ft from coop floor to roof).

Yuck!! Better block that spot off.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I agree. Block off the chosen nest site. I will put a bucket or even some chunks of logs over the site. They will look elsewhere, hopefully your nestboxes.