How to stop chicken from laying while roosting????

[Fabidon]

The last five days one of our chickens has been dropping her egg during the night while on the roost. Are there any suggestions of what we can do to get her back on schedule. We have 11 with 9 being Red Sex Linked and 2 Bard Rocks. They started laying in August and we had this problem with one early on but everything has been going well with all using the nesting boxes until five days ago when one starting dropping bombs at night. I am assuming it is the same chicken because the egg is always in the same place on the floor each morning.
For background: we built 8 nesting boxes on the wall of the walk-in coop and they would not use them; we removed the dividers and made them into 4 boxes and they would only ocassionally use one but they prefer the cardboard produce box that is on the floor of the coop. All nesting boxes (including the cardboard box) have hay in them for nesting. We came to using the cardboard box because they started nesting out in the yard so we grabbed a handy box we had from a trip to Sam's <grin> and put some hay into it and they used it exclusively.....go figure. We then built the nesting boxes in the coop but they continued to use the produce box so we moved it into the coop and they are very happy.
I think now that they are in full production (6-10 eggs a day) the one box may not be sufficient because I have seen two chickens in the box with one waiting in line outside to use it. I rigged another box for them but they seem married to the original one.
So, could the problem be that this one chicken is not alpha enough to get her time in that box? Should I remove the box and thereby force them to use the built-in nesting boxes? What can I do to make the built-in boxes more desirable to the chickens?
We love our girls and want them to be happy. Each egg is a miracle and I hate to have one being destroyed when I am probably causing it to happen by my lack of chicken management skills.
Any suggestions?
Thank you in advance for your time and help.

 

[NatureBoy86]

You could do like I do and put milk crates on the floor seeing how they like the cardboard box on they floor. Also maybe you could remove the c.b box so they can look for an alternative laying location. As for the egg bomb hen

I would......umm.... Im pretty stumped on that one too lol, hope another has some useful advice. Best of luck

 

[Fabidon]

Thank you, Natureboy, the milk containers sound like a good alternative to the cardboard box should it start to deteriorate.....where would I get some of them?

 

[NatureBoy86]

I get mine from a local vegetable stand, usually they just throw them away so I just asked the owner if I could buy a couple but he ended up giving them to me. Any grocery store will have them but they sometimes are reluctant to give away/sell them for some reason.

 

[2-acre-zoo]

I had the same with my flock in that they would always lay in the same nest-box and be crowding each other out to use it. That really got problematic when my first broody hen started muscling the others out of the way and sitting on whatever got laid that morning. My way round it was pretty traditional (I think...) - I put eggs in each and every nest box and kept taking them out of the one they liked, transferring them to the other boxes. Before long, each hen chose their favourite box and there were 4 different ones in use every day....not so bad!
As for the bombshell dropper, I suggest marking the spot where the egg has dropped every morning and then going back down to check which hen is roosting above it. Take her off her perch (at night) and put into a nest box (maybe one of your new ones?) which you have pre-covered/blocked with chicken wire and lock her in so she can't get back out till morning. Do that for a few nights till she gets the hang of laying there. If you get the wrong hen first time - no harm done, just pick the next one on the next night. I'm no professional, but that's what I'd do. Hen's seem to get a habit of doin things the same way after only a few days. Good luck!

 

[Minniechickmama]

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This sounds like sound advice.

 

[SuperChickenDude327]

BTW Bard Rock=Barred Rock

 

[ninabeast]

I had a hen who insisted on laying from the roost, during the day! I tried blocking it off, but ended up with the patented egg hammock. She used it a couple of times before moving her bad self to the nesting box. She's a very reliable layer now. I did have one BO that laid a few night eggs before she got control of her machine. How long has it been?

 

[2-acre-zoo]

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COOL! Nice invention.......

 

[Buff Oreo]

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thats a great idea, but how do you keep them from pooing in them? also if your grocer wont give you a milk crate [some actually cant because the milk companies keep them.] then get one off ebay. they sell relatively cheep

never more than 5$ [i think] and they screw right on the wall.