Nest box

califrame

In the Brooder
Dec 30, 2016
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So i'm the noobie, and i'm doing pretty good i think. i have 2 lovely marans hens that are about 2 1/2 months old. question is when they start getting in the egg laying mood in a few more months what do i do about the nest area? put some straw in there and let them put a nest together? and will they show any signs of the first egg lay?
 
put some bedding in the nest, hay or shavings, and I put ceramic eggs in them to show them where it's safe to lay.

As they reach sexual maturity their combs will enlarge and become bright shiny red, they also will become more vocal, and often they become a little pushy just before they start to lay.
 
yes i have noticed they are starting to cluck around a little bit, its like they are just getting their voices. they do tend to sleep where the nest would be so from what i'm reading on other threads i need to break them of that habit..
 
It can be easy to block the nest off. I often use buckets or empty feed bags.

Yours are just learning to make adult noises. Before egg laying starts they often become very loud and vocal. Marans generally start at around 6-9 months of age.
 
oh thats a good tip! i was going to cut a board and keep them out but that should work.. dang 6-9 months! oh well they are a blast so we'll keep waiting!
 
They could start as early as 5 months. I prefer mine do not rush it and fully mature first so they are physically ready for it. Good luck with your birds, chickens are fun.
 
Another possible tell for when pullets are soon going to lay is if they start squatting for you. All 4 of mine squatted 5-10 days before they laid their first eggs. Not all birds will do the squat but if you see it, it's a pretty good sign that you should have the next boxes open and ready.

Ironically my pullet that had an enlarged red comb the earliest ended up being the last to squat and the last to lay, by about 6 weeks.
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