laying eggs and rose bushes

[mom'sfolly]

I bought a pullet two weeks ago that I was told was about 4 months old. My concern is I don't know how to tell if she is ready to lay. The other girls were hatched in early February so the have some time to go. The chicks new favorite place is under a huge rose bush, about 10 feet around and four feet tall. The shape of the bush makes a nice shady area to hang out and dust bathe. I'm afraid she will start laying there. How do I know when she is ready? And how do I encourage her to lay in the nifty nest boxes I have prepared for her? Need help soon, that rose bush has THORNS!

Karen

 

[silkiechicken]

Just set up a nest box and put in some fake eggs. She will try to lay where it is safe. Watch for her comb and wattles to get red, that will be about when she is ready to lay.

 

[keljonma]

Make sure she has layer feed and oyster shell. Is the rose bush in a more secluded area? Maybe she wants her privacy. If you provide a nest in a safe area for her, try to make it some place you can lock her in for a week or so. With the golf balls in the nest, she will see it is a good place to lay her eggs.

regards,
keljonma

 

[ozark hen]

I , too, have hens and roo plus two guineas who rest under a large rosebush but the hens go to their nesting boxes to lay eggs. Even the guinea follows the hens and lays her eggs in the straw beneath the nesting boxes. I don't see any of them laying where they rest. I could be wrong here but just my observance.

 

[mom'sfolly]

I think I'm going to have to shut her up. They love free ranging, but I need to do the right thing with her. Poor Shiner, she'll have to get extra treats. If I shut her up and let the other 3 free-ranging do I have to do the re-introduction thing? She was up on my lap tonite after the other girls had gone to bed, mooching flax seed.

Karen