My Chickens Are Messing With Me

[Rillowen]

Perhaps they are arguing? One likes a clean no-fake nest, but the other likes to have an egg in each? Also I think by nature of how they move them sometimes when you find an egg on the floor they were just interrupted in the midst of moving it. (Not always, sometimes they just don't want that thing! )

 

[Snowbelt]

Perhaps they are arguing? One likes a clean no-fake nest, but the other likes to have an egg in each? Also I think by nature of how they move them sometimes when you find an egg on the floor they were just interrupted in the midst of moving it. (Not always, sometimes they just don't want that thing! )

Could be, or maybe a game they play with each other. Your move! The egg moving has continued. I had a fake egg disappear for three days and then show up again in a box. Another box went from 0 to 3 fake eggs in a day, then back to 1. I stopped moving them and will just let them decide what they want. I'll be removing the fake eggs soon since they know where to lay now.

 

[birdlady11]

if you want to really see what's going on and how they're doing it, get a trail cam. I had some weird things happening in my coop and I took one of my field cameras (Reolink has a great camera) from the front yard (used to see what bears are using my property) and set it up in front of the row of nest boxes. It's amazing what happens in your coop and you have no idea the antics that go on. At the peak of snake season I was able to see what the snakes were up to in my coop and adjust my egg gathering times accordingly.

I whole heartedly agree that there is so much more happening in the brains of animals that we ever give them credit for. Get a camera and enjoy the show!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I use golf balls and for the most part they don't seem to mind those, although occasionally there is a game of musical golf balls.

 

[tripletfeb]

This is very funny to me because in all my flocks, I've never had a chicken move a fake egg. I keep fake eggs in the boxes because it seems that any time I remove them, I get one egg eater and the fake eggs deter the egg eating. I second the putting a camera in the coop idea. It would be hilarious to see them moving the eggs around!