need help with my nest boxes

[wowmanacat]

perchie.girl :

Quote:
Your roosts need to be higher than their nests and somewhere other than over the top of the nests, they should not be sleeping in their nests. Also you might try putting a layer of sand in the bottom of the nest boxes under the hay. Like about two inches.

Just a couple of thoughts.

If i put sand in there the egg would rull out for front lip is only 2 1/2 high​

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote:
Your roosts need to be higher than their nests and somewhere other than over the top of the nests, they should not be sleeping in their nests. Also you might try putting a layer of sand in the bottom of the nest boxes under the hay. Like about two inches.

Just a couple of thoughts.

If i put sand in there the egg would rull out for front lip is only 2 1/2 high

Eggs wont roll in sand. But maybe you need to rethink that lip. making it higher by adding one more strip of wood. There is nothing that says your boxes have to have a front lip shorter than the sides since you have no tops on your nests.

 

[CarolynF]

Hi,
Sorry to hear about the cracked eggs. My first thought was about the shells being too soft. Many hens lay their egg on wood without breakage. Definitely make sure they're getting the right nutrition, especially calcium in the form of oyster shell and such. You might look into liquid calcium, I saw it mentioned elsewhere as a quick fix for something. Since it's hot and their eating/drinking ratio may be off, try to cool off their water by putting in frozen jugs it's supposed to be more effective at cooling them down.

Make sure they have a roost/perch that is higher than the edge of the nest boxes, they seek the highest spot.
When you add a top to the nest boxes make it sloped to discourage sitting there.

The lip of my nest box isn't very tall either, but there should be room for an inch of sand, she may consider that as good as the wood bottom. (maybe the hay tickles her toosh

) I use sand on the floor of my coop and really like it, it's very easy to clean.

Good luck!

 

[Mama Hen Chris]

Quote:
I went to Home Depot and bought indoor/outdoor carpet for the nest boxes. I think it was around $17.00 for a 6 x 8. They were out of the artificial turf ( like the doormat you were talking about) DH just cut the carpet to size. Then we just added shavings to the nest box. No cracked eggs.

I do not have a pic of the nest boxes with the carpet. This is the same carpet we used that is wrapped on the roosts.

 

[wowmanacat]

Well the idea for now is to make three new nest boxes. One is out of a cat litter box(plastic) and the other two is going to be out a old broken cooler that is divided. The nest boxes that are in there are (1) to high and (2) to small for the chickens. I am only a little under 5 ft tall and I can not see in the egg nest till I get right up to them.
Today maybe tomorrow I am going to get a rabbit feeder to put calcium in to have it in there all the time. I have 5 roosters that eat everything that is put out. I am going to try this week end to move the littles to the coop and the roosters to the pen and keep them in there away from all the littles and the hens. I might even get to take the roosters to the auction later today.

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote:
There is part of the problem too. The existing nest boxes are too high.... Not a criticism just an observation. I know this whole set up was not yours from the start. Putting the new nest boxes a couple of feet off the ground will help immensely both for keeping the chickens from sleeping in them (No Poo in the nests) and for you to get the eggs. Have you got something you can use to cover the old nest boxes so they will turn to the new ones?

 

[wowmanacat]

I got permission to tack out the nest boxes that are in there and make new ones. I will be trying to do that today. For a time we are only going to three nest boxes but that is all I am going to need for a time. This is great news for me but with the heat it is going to be a time before I can build new ones and put them up.

 

[wowmanacat]

Well I got my portable nest boxes done and in the coop along with a board over the top of the other ones. Here they are

They are much better than the other ones that are above it.

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote:
They look awesome.... Love the cooler one. I may have to borrow that idea....

 

[justtoni44]

with all the options my hens have for nests.they prefer cardboard boxes with hay in them
To cute when they peek thier little heads up like they are hiding..Also, read on BYC
to put empty 1 gallon milk jugs in the nesting boxes at night to break them from sleeping in them
I assume that is why the nests are dirty.
Good Luck