New coop with new layers

[shelby h]

My four chickies were in a smallish pre- pac coop for a few months, and we recently built them a McMansion of a coop. They've only been in the new coop for a few days. So far, they're all pretty good about staying on the roost bar; but now my one regular layer ( they had all officially laid their first egg before moving) is dropping her eggs from the roost bar! We had to build them nest boxes since the pre- pac nest box is firmly attached. Any suggestions? I just now took the bedding we had put in the small coop, and put it in the new nest boxes, hoping it would smell familiar to them, and they would use the new boxes, think this will help?

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

My four chickies were in a smallish pre- pac coop for a few months, and we recently built them a McMansion of a coop. They've only been in the new coop for a few days. So far, they're all pretty good about staying on the roost bar; but now my one regular layer ( they had all officially laid their first egg before moving) is dropping her eggs from the roost bar! We had to build them nest boxes since the pre- pac nest box is firmly attached. Any suggestions? I just now took the bedding we had put in the small coop, and put it in the new nest boxes, hoping it would smell familiar to them, and they would use the new boxes, think this will help?

How recently did you move them? Stresses like a move can often cause issues like this - so if it's been within the last week or two I would not be too concerned. It may be something about the way the new boxes are located or designed that is making them unappealing - photos of the interior of yoour coop can help with that -- comparison photos or description of the nest boxes in teh previous coop will also help see the changes from a bird's perspective.

 

[shelby h]

How recently did you move them?  Stresses like a move can often cause issues like this - so if it's been within the last week or two I would not be too concerned.  It may be something about the way the new boxes are located or designed that is making them unappealing - photos of the interior of yoour coop can help with that -- comparison photos or description of the nest boxes in teh previous coop will also help see the changes from a bird's perspective.

Just in the past few days. We built an 8x8 shed for them, and put a roost bar in since the pre-pac's bars were a joke. The nest box that we're using right now is a long, wide wood planter box with dirt on the bottom and lots of bedding to nest in. The old coop was a lot like this one.

Not a lot of room! This is a (really bad) pic off their new home.

Two of them are laying in the box, but the one is laying here eggs super early, before i even open the door for them to roam. Do you think she might just figure it out on her own? They all sporadically laid eggs in the one nest box (being new to laying), so they've shared a nest box from the beginning

 

[shelby h]

Oh. And we put dividers in the plant box for individual nest areas