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- #91
Quote:
If you put a golf ball or fake egg (like they sell at the feed store) in their nest, they 'should' get the idea. 'Should' is the key word here.
If I find a hidden nest, I indulge them and allow them to continue laying there if the eggs are not in peril. For example, yesterday, I found a clutch of 17 eggs under a boat. I candled them all and determined there were no developing chicks, likely due to the high heat. Then I removed 12, marked the remaining 5 with red marker, and returned them to the nest. Today, I watched two hens return to the nest and lay their eggs. If I had removed all of the eggs, the chickens would have deemed it an unsafe spot and gone elsewhere to lay. As long as I know where they lay, I add it to my list of checking places, which just makes it more fun. Sort of like an Easter egg hunt every day!
If you put a golf ball or fake egg (like they sell at the feed store) in their nest, they 'should' get the idea. 'Should' is the key word here.

If I find a hidden nest, I indulge them and allow them to continue laying there if the eggs are not in peril. For example, yesterday, I found a clutch of 17 eggs under a boat. I candled them all and determined there were no developing chicks, likely due to the high heat. Then I removed 12, marked the remaining 5 with red marker, and returned them to the nest. Today, I watched two hens return to the nest and lay their eggs. If I had removed all of the eggs, the chickens would have deemed it an unsafe spot and gone elsewhere to lay. As long as I know where they lay, I add it to my list of checking places, which just makes it more fun. Sort of like an Easter egg hunt every day!