Nesting box

[chicken6722]

When i built my coop, I decided to put the nesting box in as a removable add on in the coop. I took some scrap wood and built a little box in the corner of the coop with a basket, some straw and a fake egg hoping they would lay in it but every night one of my hens sleeps in their and leaves a lot of poop in the nesting box

. I don't know what to do and I need help!!

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

When i built my coop, I decided to put the nesting box in as a removable add on in the coop. I took some scrap wood and built a little box in the corner of the coop with a basket, some straw and a fake egg hoping they would lay in it but every night one of my hens sleeps in their and leaves a lot of poop in the nesting box

. I don't know what to do and I need help!!

Nest sleeping is a pretty common issue encountered when keeping chickens. It is also generally fairly easily corrected. Are your birds of laying age and currently laying? If so, where are they laying? Is this the only nest you have? Is it the same bird each night, or different birds? How does the nest relate to the roosts in height?

 

[chicken6722]

The birds are laying age and each one is laying an egg a day. The nesting box itself is on the ground but the nest inside is elevated abut 6 inches off the coop floor. It seems to be the same bird every night.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Simple solution is to go out each night at the time they are going to roost and physically move the bird to the roost. After a few nights of this routine you will likely see her starting to go to the roost on her own. Another option, since the basket is mobile, is to simply remove the nest about half an hour before your birds usually go to roost. Since the nest won't be there, she will find a new place to sleep (hopefully the roost) - but you'll need to go out and replace the nest in the morning.