laying eggs in all the wrong places!

[NurseRed]

good day!

my girls are not using their nesting boxes. we had been finding eggs on the coop floor. then for days nothing. today, i open the hen house door and the girls run out... running!

i follow them to another location in the barn and i realize... they are laying the eggs there! i give them privacy and come back later to find 3 dozen eggs!!!

questions:

can we eat these eggs?

how do i get them to use the nesting boxes?

thanks in advance!

blessings,
Nurse Red

 

[maidenwolfx80]

With the eggs you can do a float test to telll freshness. The older eggs have larger air cells and will float, so if the egg is laying on the bottom its the freshest, if it is standing on its pointed end with what i call the "butt" sticking up in the air its stale probably a few weeks old and if it floats on the top iys very old.
You can try placing fake eggs or golf balls in the nests to convince them that is the place to lay them. Maybe try different litter in the nest box

 

[devora]

Welcome to BYC!

I don't eat rogue eggs but I scramble 'em and feed 'em to the chickens.

If you lock your girls in for a week and make them lay in the boxes it will lessen the rogue egg situation.

Just tell 'em it it's for their own good.

 

[aggiemae]

I am having the same problem with one of our pullets. I found two tiny eggs under her, under a bush. So yesterday when I heard her singing and went out scooped her up and put her into the nest box but she just jumped up on the roost and yelled her head off for an hour before I gave up and let her out. She ran under the bush and laid that egg in under two minutes.

She's easy to catch so I plan on putting her in the coop as soon as I heard her and not letting her out until she lays.

Does anyone know if there is a time limit or if this could harm her?

As for your hens, I notice that if one of mine do something the others are apt to follow and think this is why our other hen's are using the box. to lay. So maybe if you put one of them into the next box when she's making her laying sounds the rest will follow her?

PS: If you figure out something that works be sure to post!

 

[flockman]

If my hens or pullets start laying rogue eggs, I lock them up for a few days so that they remember to lay them in the nest boxes. I do keep golf balls in the nest boxes. I haven't had any rogue eggs in 6 months or so now.

 

[NurseRed]

i left the girls in the coop today till 10:30 a.m. i found 2 eggs on the ground, under their perch... broken. i guess they decided to just drop them from there!!!!

i opened the door and 2 girls went running to thier favorite spot.

i'll try leaving them in for a week... i don't have any golf balls. i work on that.

thanks for the tips!

 

[carolwfuller]

I only have 5 hens now as three were killed by my dog. Everything has been going well and I regularly find 5 eggs in the nesting box. But today I found only three eggs in the nesting box, one in the grass ( fresh) and one on the roost. Have given them the oyster shell again. Will cut down on the snacks ( corn and wheat bread). Anything else I should do? thanks!

 

[HopePeaceChickens:)]

I take one of the eggs that was layed on the floor of the coop and mark it with a sharpie, and then put it in the nest boxes. Usually does the trick

 

[carolwfuller]

Mark it so I know which one it is? Can I use it tomorrow? How do you think this works? Thanks so much!

 

[Rhoise]

Same issues here, pullets laying everywhere but nest boxes, as soon as I let them out they go running and pile on top of each other to lay in the favorite shhh nest behind the shed, I wouldnt care but we have squirrels and cats, and the days no one is home they're gonna be locked up. So.......yesterday my husband and I "re-modeled" the nest boxes. Added a few bottom boards in front to add privacy and keep nonlaying girls out( they were playing kick ball with the fakes on a daily basis), added more cushin(wood shavings) and upped the anti on fake eggs to two and three per nest instead of one. Yesterday we locked them up and they paced back and forth frantically till i caved and let them out, two ran straight to the nest behind the shed didn't even blink at new nest boxes and layed their eggs, My "Betty White" wouldn't lay........This morning HOWEVER, at 6am when i checked on them, my white hen had layed from the roost in the night(luckily i padded more litter under the roosts yesterday too) but the two other pullets that usually v-line for the shed caved today at 10 am and used the nice new nest boxes!!!! I think the combo of more privacy, desperation, and three fake eggs did the trick, they both layed in seperate nest boxes(the two with three fakes instead of one ha!) So.....
1. LOCK EM UP
2. MAKE SURE NEST BOXES ARE QUIET AND PRIVATE
3. MULTIPLE FAKE EGGS
4.EXTRA PADDING
This may help?? I'm not sure if it was the cause of mine finaly laying in nests for omnce but it's worth a try. My next idea was curtains hahahha I read this somewhere....Also if your coop is large enough you could try a box or crate, or tote, someone even mentioned a covered litter box. Mine love Dog crates(well that was their brooder so it makes sence)