How to get pullets to lay in the nesting boxes

[Anastatia_S]

I currently have 3 pullets, there is 2 nesting boxes in their coop and I’ve tried making it as appealing as possible for them. I put two fake eggs in each box to show them where to lay and I’ve tried gently moving them into the nesting boxes when I notice them trying to nest somewhere else in the coop and we collect the eggs every morning but nothing seems to work. One of the girls has always laid in the nesting box but the other two don’t seem interested at all, does anyone have any tips on how I could try and encourage them to lay in the boxes?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Some folks have had success with this method, which is what I do:

Now this isn't practical if you don't have time to stalk them, but what I did was I learned the problem bird(s) laying schedules, and when they went to their preferred spot to lay, I'd go and pick them up, stick them in a nest box, and barricade them in using my arms to cover the exit. 30-60 seconds was all they needed to calm down and start exploring the box and decide that maybe it wasn't such a bad place to be. They each started reliably using the boxes after that.

Alternatively, some folks design "doors" on their nest boxes so birds can be locked in, which basically does the same as above, but forces the bird to stay in the nest box (whereas once I see them exploring and sitting down in the nest, I leave them to it and walk away).

 

[6BeachChicks]

I currently have 3 pullets, there is 2 nesting boxes in their coop and I’ve tried making it as appealing as possible for them. I put two fake eggs in each box to show them where to lay and I’ve tried gently moving them into the nesting boxes when I notice them trying to nest somewhere else in the coop and we collect the eggs every morning but nothing seems to work. One of the girls has always laid in the nesting box but the other two don’t seem interested at all, does anyone have any tips on how I could try and encourage them to lay in the boxes?

Not much else i know of that you can do. Maybe the other two will catch on.

 

[aart]

How long have these birds been laying?
Pics of nests?

 

[Anastatia_S]

How long have these birds been laying?
Pics of nests?

 

[Anastatia_S]

Some folks have had success with this method, which is what I do:

Now this isn't practical if you don't have time to stalk them, but what I did was I learned the problem bird(s) laying schedules, and when they went to their preferred spot to lay, I'd go and pick them up, stick them in a nest box, and barricade them in using my arms to cover the exit. 30-60 seconds was all they needed to calm down and start exploring the box and decide that maybe it wasn't such a bad place to be. They each started reliably using the boxes after that.

Alternatively, some folks design "doors" on their nest boxes so birds can be locked in, which basically does the same as above, but forces the bird to stay in the nest box (whereas once I see them exploring and sitting down in the nest, I leave them to it and walk away).

Thanks! I’m definitely going to try the first option

 

[SurferchickinSB]

View attachment 2887615View attachment 2887616

Sometimes it helps if you put some curtains in front because then they feel like they have privacy and their own little spot. I don’t think my girls would want to lay without their curtains.

 

[Anastatia_S]

How long have these birds been laying?
Pics of nests?

I will go out in the morning and take some pics to post. 1 has been laying for around 2 months and she doesn’t use the nesting box. The other two only started laying 2 weeks ago and one of them uses the box and the other doesn’t

 

[Anastatia_S]

Sometimes it helps if you put some curtains in front because then they feel like they have privacy and their own little spot. I don’t think my girls would want to lay without their curtains.

That’s a great idea. Thank you! I’ll definitely try that.

 

[thechickenpeeps]

The easiest way if you can, (hopefully they lay in the morning) is to just leave them in the coop a little later, or lock them in the coop / run if you have one the entire day. They will lay in the box for sure. Just a couple of days of that and they usually get the message.