New nesting boxes

[Lrnadoon]

I have 3 hens that are about 18 months old. I am adding 10 chickens to the coop. I have enlarged the coop and have purchase 4 new plastic nesting boxes. I no longer want my older girls to use the old nesting boxes. In the summer the original nesting boxes get very hot here in TX. Now that we have added on to our coop i have a much better place for nesting boxes that will be cooler in the summer for them all. Should I just place pretend eggs in the new nesting boxes and let the girls check thing out before I close out the old nesting boxes or should I just close them up and hope the girls find the new boxes to lay in? It probably would have been easier if it was a completely new coop but we decided to turn are run into a big coop and open up the old coop into it. My chickens have about 1/3 of an acre that is fenced in for free ranging they are not stuck in the coop unless weather is bad. It's a lot of changes for the my older girls so I want to get them used to the run being their new coop and the new nesting boxes before I introduce everyone! Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Mrs. K]

Actually, I think it would be better to change everything at once and add the new birds too. Discombobulate everyone. No one has territorial rights, everyone is trying to figure it all out. Less old girls picking on new girls.

Mrs K

 

[Ridgerunner]

How old are the ten new ones? That would influence what I'd do. How big is the new coop? The old coop? This is easier if we know what you are working with.

If they are all mature I'd tend to agree with Mrs. K. Discombobulate them. Confuse them. Mess with their minds. But that depends on how big the new coop is. If it is big enough I'd probably try locking them all in it for few days to reach them that is where home is while closing the old coop so they can't get back in there. Make the old girls find new nests. Hopefully they will be the nests you want.

If room is limited in the new coop I'd probably block off the old coop and let them have access to the new coop and the fenced run until they are integrated. Then consider locking them in the new coop if they haven't figured out where to lay.

If the new ones are still immature and the old coop is big enough I'd probably house them in there until I could go through a normal integration. Move the old hens into the new coop.

I don't think it would hurt anything to let the old hens see the new coop and nests for a while before you block off the old nests. I don't think it will help much either. They are typically so focused on the nest they are using that they probably will not pay attention to the others until they have to.

Good luck. This should be fun.

 

[Lrnadoon]

Actually, I think it would be better to change everything at once and add the new birds too. Discombobulate everyone. No one has territorial rights, everyone is trying to figure it all out. Less old girls picking on new girls.

Mrs K

I like this idea. Thanks for replying.

 

[ChookaPete]

Place golf balls into the new nests, then lock up the chickens in that area for a day or two (with food and water available).

 

[Lrnadoon]

How old are the ten new ones? That would influence what I'd do. How big is the new coop? The old coop? This is easier if we know what you are working with.

If they are all mature I'd tend to agree with Mrs. K. Discombobulate them. Confuse them. Mess with their minds. But that depends on how big the new coop is. If it is big enough I'd probably try locking them all in it for few days to reach them that is where home is while closing the old coop so they can't get back in there. Make the old girls find new nests. Hopefully they will be the nests you want.

If room is limited in the new coop I'd probably block off the old coop and let them have access to the new coop and the fenced run until they are integrated. Then consider locking them in the new coop if they haven't figured out where to lay.

If the new ones are still immature and the old coop is big enough I'd probably house them in there until I could go through a normal integration. Move the old hens into the new coop.

I don't think it would hurt anything to let the old hens see the new coop and nests for a while before you block off the old nests. I don't think it will help much either. They are typically so focused on the nest they are using that they probably will not payattention to the others until they have to.

Good luck. This should be fun.

 

[Lrnadoon]

My older hens figured out the new nesting boxes the first day! I think they hated the old ones....the new nesting boxes are those fancy plastic ones with curtains! Thanks for your advice. Here are a few pics of our coop. We basically turned our original run and coop into a HUGE coop. It is open concept because we live in TX and the summers are brutal. Don't worry...we have plexiglass windows that come on and off when the storms come through! The last pic is the run within a run where I have been letting the little's hang out during the day so they can see the older 3 ladies and vice versa.

 

[McChooky]

Some of my 2 yr olds started laying in my 4 yr old hens coop because they liked their community nest box better or just like to piss them off

 

[Mrs. K]

What a gorgeous open air coop! Good air flow, shade and space.

 

[Lrnadoon]

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What a gorgeous open air coop!

Good air flow, shade and space.

What a gorgeous open air coop! Good air flow, shade and space.

Thanks so much! We dread those Texas summers air flow is so important!