Laying dilemas

[SmartyChick]

Hope maybe I am not the only one with CRAZY hens! We built nice nesting boxes, seven in all for our nine hens and they all must lay in ONE box. They wait in line...it is crazy. All the squabbles going on just to get in that box. Many times the eggs are broken because everyone is climbing over them and I have a mess! Today I put a board over the box and you would think I murdered some hen out there with all the squawking going on. Has anyone experienced this and what did you do?

 

[triplepurpose]

Quote:

The way you describe it made me grin. We've got probably fifteen that are actively laying right now, and they all like to lay in the same place too. I provided a couple other nice little crannies to try to entice them, but I've now given up on that. Somehow, ours seem to have worked it out though and there's not too much chaos, broken eggs, etc. Maybe your other boxes aren't dark enough or something? They really like to be in a very out-of-the-way, dark, quiet spot, in theory, but in practice their choices of a laying spot don't always make much sense. Some amount of squawking though is normal (just in case you didn't know this)--they do that all the time when they are fixing to lay, though I have no idea why.

Anyhow, best of luck to you!

 

[4-H chicken mom]

Put a fake egg in the others. Maybe it will help them get the idea.

 

[elmo]

The fake egg trick worked like a charm for me.

 

[MareeZoCool]

I'd think they'd all be excited, finding extra nesting boxes.

 

[SmartyChick]

Fake Eggs ya

tried that one. That doesn't work for my hens, they roll them to the box they want to lay in.