i somehow acquired 2 runaways and i have questions. please help

[alinas2010]

aw thanks! i have a lot of garden work to do for the new greenhouse. i can’t wait to put it up. i really hope for no emergencies. i do have a good friend who is a vet and has chickens herself. i just wish she lived a little closer! i did mcguiver a bigger roost today with some stuff i had around. it was a bit of a fiasco. right after i put it in there, louise decided she needed to lay an egg. i think she thought the new thing was weird or something (she did hop up on it though!) because she wasn’t happy to lay an egg in there today. she has been going in just for egg laying but she was having none of it today. the two of them act all crazy when they need to lay an egg. is that what all chickens are like? running all around and trying to climb on and squeeze into spaces that they shouldn’t squeeze into.
anyway, she did eventually lay an egg in there but not until after trying a thousand other spots.
they both left me for the trees after that.
she even tried this pot which is even tinier than thelma’s pot. and there’s a pic of my overkill roost. it’s all i had

I’m laughing at her in that tiny pot! How hilarious what a goofball!

Your roost looks good, I think they’ll come around to it! My chickens roost on the wide, flat end of 2x4s, so I don’t think that’s too big at all. They can sit on their feet and keep their toes covered that way.

And yes, chickens get crazy when they need to lay eggs! Especially if you change things up, they don’t handle change well. Mine yell at me and swipe me with their beaks when they need to lay eggs, particularly when I have the gate to their coop closed or someone is in their favorite nesting box. They run around like crazy trying to find a new spot! You might try putting golf balls or fake eggs where ever you want them to lay. They will then see the fake eggs there and know it’s a safe place to lay. It may take a bit but it usually works.

 

[pollipazzi]

I’m laughing at her in that tiny pot! How hilarious what a goofball!

Your roost looks good, I think they’ll come around to it! My chickens roost on the wide, flat end of 2x4s, so I don’t think that’s too big at all. They can sit on their feet and keep their toes covered that way.

And yes, chickens get crazy when they need to lay eggs! Especially if you change things up, they don’t handle change well. Mine yell at me and swipe me with their beaks when they need to lay eggs, particularly when I have the gate to their coop closed or someone is in their favorite nesting box. They run around like crazy trying to find a new spot! You might try putting golf balls or fake eggs where ever you want them to lay. They will then see the fake eggs there and know it’s a safe place to lay. It may take a bit but it usually works.

i was wondering if the fake eggs really work. i will try to find something. it’s probably hard to tell, but it’s a 2x4 on top across 2 4” post pieces. it’s just that the posts seem very bulky. i just screwed another metal bracket on the original roost bar so it doesn’t fall over and i can still take it out to clean.
i’m glad to know it’s not just these guys that are crazy! i was thinking no wonder he gave them to me! lol!
if you only knew the amount of giant sized pots i have, it makes her even more ridiculous

 

[pollipazzi]

I’m laughing at her in that tiny pot! How hilarious what a goofball!

Your roost looks good, I think they’ll come around to it! My chickens roost on the wide, flat end of 2x4s, so I don’t think that’s too big at all. They can sit on their feet and keep their toes covered that way.

And yes, chickens get crazy when they need to lay eggs! Especially if you change things up, they don’t handle change well. Mine yell at me and swipe me with their beaks when they need to lay eggs, particularly when I have the gate to their coop closed or someone is in their favorite nesting box. They run around like crazy trying to find a new spot! You might try putting golf balls or fake eggs where ever you want them to lay. They will then see the fake eggs there and know it’s a safe place to lay. It may take a bit but it usually works.

thank you thank you thank you! it works!
i went to a shop today that had a bunch of easter stuff including wooden eggs you can decorate. it came with 4 in the pack so i put two in each nesting box. i don’t think they were in there 10 minutes and thelma started acting crazy. she couldn’t get her bum in the pot so she started running around like a chicken with her…. um… trying to lay an egg. and she went in the coop and she didn’t come out for a really long time! and lookit! i’m so proud of her. that was the shortest crazy time yet!

 

[alinas2010]

thank you thank you thank you! it works!
i went to a shop today that had a bunch of easter stuff including wooden eggs you can decorate. it came with 4 in the pack so i put two in each nesting box. i don’t think they were in there 10 minutes and thelma started acting crazy. she couldn’t get her bum in the pot so she started running around like a chicken with her…. um… trying to lay an egg. and she went in the coop and she didn’t come out for a really long time! and lookit! i’m so proud of her. that was the shortest crazy time yet!

That’s awesome! I love that it didn’t take them very long, what smart ladies! Hopefully from here on out they see this as their safe spot to lay. Mine occasionally switch to laying in corners of the coop when I place a feed bag in a corner creating a cozy nook or something like that. They’re so funny, who knows what goes on in their cute little heads.

 

[RUNuts]

I had bag of mulch open and propped up by the fence. I went to grab the bag and was surprised by an upset chicken with her egg laying being interrupted. I had 3 eggs sitting on my mulch.

They will choose interesting spots to lay.

Also, golf balls are good fake eggs. Sometimes they are easier to find.

 

[pollipazzi]

That’s awesome! I love that it didn’t take them very long, what smart ladies! Hopefully from here on out they see this as their safe spot to lay. Mine occasionally switch to laying in corners of the coop when I place a feed bag in a corner creating a cozy nook or something like that. They’re so funny, who knows what goes on in their cute little heads.

i hope so too! that would stop a whole lot of stress and drama! they are goofy little things
i meant to ask. do i just leave them in there until they get used to going in there?

 

[alinas2010]

i hope so too! that would stop a whole lot of stress and drama! they are goofy little things
i meant to ask. do i just leave them in there until they get used to going in there?

I think it’s really up to you. In theory they should learn that’s a safe spot after a while and be okay to lay there without fake eggs. But I will tell you, when my chickens had been laying a full year, my brother watched them and collected the fake egg on accident and after that they went rogue laying where they felt was the best spot since the fake egg wasn’t there to guide them any longer. So take that as you will lol I will leave my fake eggs in the nesting boxes for eternity, but others will probably chime in which what works well for them.

 

[pollipazzi]

I think it’s really up to you. In theory they should learn that’s a safe spot after a while and be okay to lay there without fake eggs. But I will tell you, when my chickens had been laying a full year, my brother watched them and collected the fake egg on accident and after that they went rogue laying where they felt was the best spot since the fake egg wasn’t there to guide them any longer. So take that as you will lol I will leave my fake eggs in the nesting boxes for eternity, but others will probably chime in which what works well for them.

i think louise will catch on pretty quick but thelma is a bit simple. i love that about her but she makes her life harder than she needs to i will leave them in!

 

[Perris]

i went to a shop today that had a bunch of easter stuff including wooden eggs you can decorate. it came with 4 in the pack

great find! this is definitely the right time of year to find fake eggs going cheap. I use a mix of rubber ones (joke ones, they bounce) and golfballs. I leave 1 or 2 in every nestbox, and in selected 'hidden' nests round the garden (to keep the hen laying there, if it's a good spot, so I don't have to keep hunting for them given I have some hens who prefer to lay off base).

 

[RUNuts]

i meant to ask. do i just leave them in there until they get used to going in there?

Yes, I leave golf balls in the nests to show the hens that it is a safe place to lay.