my young hen laying eggs

[kier]

Just wondering why my young hen would lay an egg in a nest box that already has an egg in it?

 

[chicmom]

Sometimes, you can have several nest boxes, but the hens all like one particular nest box, and will literally wait in line for their turn. Madness huh?

I have four nice nesting boxes, and 11 hens, and occasionally they will use two, but most times, all the eggs are in the same nesting box. The one clear to the left by the window. It boggles the mind.

Must be a chicken thing.

 

[TigerLilly]

Because that's what they do? Seriously, you may have 2 or 3 (or more) nest boxes, but for some reason all the girls decide they like the same one...no rhyme or reason to it. I have 2 nest boxes & find most of my eggs in the one on the left. Ocassionally I'll find one on the right, usually from a new layer.
Having an egg in the nest is an incentive to get hens to use the nest box.

 

[Chick Norris]

They do that. We have three out of six hens laying so far. They all use the same nest box even though there are 5 more identical ones available. I don't know if there is a behavioural reason behind it or simply jealousy!

 

[hispoptart]

Mine all lay in the same box also. There's another box right next to the one they use, but if the one they like already has a chicken in it and they can't wait to lay, the will lay one the coop floor rather then use the other box

They don't care if theres an egg already in the box as long as the hen that laid it is out off the box they go in an lays their egg right next to the other one.

 

[Mommy 2 Wee Ones]

Me too! I made a 4 box nest box, and since egg # 3, all the eggs have been laid in the nest box to the far right. Furthest from the window, closest to the roost. It was interesting, my BR are my most mature 2 out of 3, and I got 2 eggs yesterday, so I did not expect an egg today. But while my youngest daughter & I were out with the chickens, Baby Girl went into the coop & into nest box #4, moved the golf ball over & settled in. I wanted to wait & hear the egg song, but we had to leave. So as soon as we got back, I told my daughter to check the coop & see if Baby Girl laid her egg. And sure enough, there was the perfect little brown egg (#6 since Sept. 1st) in the nest box.

We used egg #1, but eggs 2 - 6 are in the fridge, you can see 2 is slightly smaller than the rest, so the egg size is getting bigger.

I think I may make brownies tonight & ise 2 of my small eggs to make 1 large egg.