Is is possible to stop them from laying their eggs in the yard?

[featherenvy]

My hens have a run and free range when I am home. I just found a henmade nesting box in the lower branches of the arborvitae tree. There were 7 eggs! No wonder my egg count was down. How do I get them to lay in the coop and not in the yard?

 

[BetterHensandGardens]

You might need to keep them in the coop for a few weeks so they get used to laying their eggs there, rather than outside...............

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Or at least keep them in the coop until the afternoon. I let mine out at around 2-3 pm.

Another option is to just keep checking that nest in the yard for eggs each day. It doesn't matter where they lay them, as long as you know where to find them!

Did you keep those eggs you found in the tree? They may still be good, I've used eggs I've found in hidden nests. Put them in a bowl of water, if they sink to the bottom they should be good. But if they float, bury 'em quick!

 

[featherenvy]

Thanks for the help. I have noticed that most of the laying is finished by 3. I did not keep those eggs. Next time I will use the sink and float test. Thanks for the tip.

 

[groundpecker]

Keep your birds in the run/coop for a couple weeks. Make sure your nestboxes are clean and have soft material in them. You can also put a fake egg or a golf ball in each bay as an example of where to lay. Too much sunlight on the nest boxes may also keep them from laying there.