I found a hidden nest

[IndiesChix]

I thought all my girls were laying in the nesting boxes, but I was wrong. Found one of my EE'S nesting under some foliage up against house, when she left I looked and about had a heart attack! 17 hidden eggs. She isn't broody, she just started laying , but obviously not in the boxes.

 

[Chicken Girl1]

It may be that there aren't enough nesting boxes to go around?

 

[IndiesChix]

From what I read on this forum, 1 box for every 4 chickens. I have 14 pullets and 6 nesting boxes. 5 are laying right now and they all favor the bottom 3 boxes. She is laying in the boxes now. She isn't the smartest bulb in the bunch, I think she has it figures out now.

 

[MaLoTu]

Sometimes they just have spots they better prefer. I have curbed my one pullets desire to lay in the yard by keeping them locked up until it gets later in the afternoon or until I know she has laid an egg. Today I heard her bocking like she was going to lay and seen her by her preferred nesting spot. I went and picked her up and put all the chickens away! lol. I will let them out again later before its dark.

 

[DanielB20]

Sometimes they just have spots they better prefer. I have curbed my one pullets desire to lay in the yard by keeping them locked up until it gets later in the afternoon or until I know she has laid an egg. Today I heard her bocking like she was going to lay and seen her by her preferred nesting spot. I went and picked her up and put all the chickens away! lol. I will let them out again later before its dark.

I found one too.

 

[mmmyyykkkeee]

I read that hens want privacy when laying so they sometimes lay in other places where you don't see them. My RIR used to lay in one of the nesting boxes but after some hens invaded her nests, she looked for another place and she found my basket. I saw her sitting there so i put some hay in it. Next day she laid an egg in there!