Okay, so my little girls will be ready to go outside soon its getting to be pretty weather here. Anyways, I was wondering if I need to really fill their nesting boxes yet? They will not be ready to lay for another few months....so, just wondering.
I do not place the nest boxes in the coops until about 5 months or 20-22 weeks old. They like to sleep in them if it is cold outside and that is a hard habit to break. I use Milk Crates as nest boxes and they work great!
ii dont really know what to do my nesting boxes are built onto the coop ...i suppose i could staple a burlap sack over the openings until they r more mature then i could just remove it.
I agree with the boarding up part! After reading many posts in these threads about this issue, I've been watching more closely. I have 6 chicks about 7 weeks old, and 7 that are at about 4 weeks. All of them, and I do mean all, discovered that going up the branch/roost took them from the floor of the coop to the first level of an old book deposit cabinet I'm using as a nesting box cabinet (and soon a brooding box on the lower level):
Sorry about the dirtiness - this weekend is clean the coop weekend. This shows the nesting boxes open. As you can tell from the droppings, they enjoy that area - and have been playing in the boxes, scratching through the straw - found the 3 BRs huddled together in one of them one morning. So, I have boarded them up, waiting for that first egg to appear, probably in the straw on the ground (floor). Then, following the advice in here, I'll remove the boards, put in clean straw, and they can have at it!
I do not place the nest boxes in the coops until about 5 months or 20-22 weeks old. They like to sleep in them if it is cold outside and that is a hard habit to break. I use Milk Crates as nest boxes and they work great!
I am planning on using milk crates as well. Do you have yours on their sides or with the opening to the top? If they are of their sides, do you use anything to help keep the bedding from falling out? And what kind of bedding do you us in them? Would straw be ok?
I use plastic totes(12 to 20gal.) I cut a opening in one end and leave a good 2-4 inch lip to hold the hay. Mine just set on the floor of the coop. I can walk in and lift the lid to check for eggs and if I find a broken one it is an easy fix. Just carry the whole tote out to the compost pile and dump out. Then I can scrub,disinfect, wipe dry and reset in 5-7 minutes. All clean and ready to go no smell to get into the wood. Another plus to this method is it makes it easy to move a broody without disturbing her too much. I just pull the whole tote and slide it into a giant size wire dog crate inside the coop. Set her own private food and water up. I put 1 X 6 boards around the bottom to keep new born chicks in. Works great....
