how far should the perch be from the nesting box

[ashtray]

like the title says also should the perch be taller than the nesting box floor or sit lower than the nesting box

 

[zigzag3337]

A chicken is going to roost as high as he/she can. If the laying boxes are higher then the roost, then you are going to have plenty of poo in your nesting boxes in the years to come.

I designed my coop so that the roost area is about 8 feet from the nesting boxes and I also made sure that they have plenty of roosting room at least 4-5 sq' per bird.

 

[PortageGirl]

I never felt it matters how far the nest boxes were from the roosts as long as the boxes are lower than the roost, and they aren't directly under them either so they don't get poo all over the boxes, hens, nests or eggs overnight.

 

[ashtray]

i have seen a few pics of a 2x4 that runs along the lenght of the nest box i guess its there to help the hens get in the nesting box ... is this necessary to use .. i dont think its actually used for a roosting spoy

 

[PortageGirl]

no, it's just a sort of step, you really don't want them roosting there overnight at all.

 

[ashtray]

so they should be able to get in the nesting box without an problems without a step .. if so then i will remove it

 

[PortageGirl]

Probably, but if their roosts are higher than the boxes, and there's enough room for all of em to fit on the roosts, it should be fine to leave them too. Try them either way, see how it goes! Chickens should make you calmer and make you happy, not stress you out!

 

[ArizonaDesertChicks]

Quote:
I have this same question - how far should the perch (not the roost) be from the nest boxes? We just built our nestboxes and added dowels about 3-4 inches from the boxes, but I'm second guessing myself as to whether they're in the right place or not.
How far out should they be & should they be level with the nestboxes or a few inches lower?

We're still waiting for our 19 week old chickens to start laying, so they aren't giving me any clues.

 

[digitS']

For quite awhile, I had one large nest box for my 4 hens near their roosts. Because of how this small coop is built, having the hens use the roost ladder to get to the box made sense, I thought.

Now and then, I'd have a hen that decided to start roosting in the box even if there were boards higher for her to use. Passing by on the ladder and seeing the cozy nest must have been too much of a temptation for some of them. I'd have to teach them to stay out of it at night

.

This past year, I moved the nest box about 5 feet away. They aren't able to see into the box unless they climb a separate ladder to get up there. So, there's a roost ladder and a nestbox ladder. (We are only talking about 2 or 3 rungs on each.)

Of course, this meant that I had to teach the pullets where this nestbox was. But this was much, much better than teaching them to stay the heck out of it at night!! Within a few weeks, they learned where it was and its best use. They sleep on the roost and lay eggs in the box

.

Steve

 

[newchickmom]

My landing area is about 6inches out in front of the nest boxes. the roosts are over by the other wall.