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[KARL]

do chickens lay eggs where they sleep or is that a different spot?

 

[allisonwonderland]

my chickens all lay in the spot in the corner of the coop for some reasen, but they do not lay where they sleep.

 

[B. Saffles Farms]

They like to lay in a darker, private place.

 

[Mrs.Puff]

Oh man Karl, you need to get ahold of Gail Damerow's book Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens. They do not sleep in their nest boxes. They should have roosts to sleep on.

 

[needmorechickens!]

Well first of all...

It is better if they sleep somewhere other than the nest. If they sleep in the nest there is usually a big pile of poo in the nest and your eggs will be dirty.
Put the nest lower than the roost and usually they will choose the roost.

~Rebecca

 

[clayhill]

Chickens sleep or "roost" on a perch like any other bird, most people use 2"x2" boards to build this roost. They lay in a nestbox and should not be allowed to sleep in it. Mine wanted to sleep in the nestbox at first and I had to hang a towel over them until they learned to sleep on the roost. Have had no problems since.

 

[digitS']

In Southeast Asia (which is probably the home of the chicken) and in treeless villages, chickens will "roost" on the ground, under buildings.

When a hen is seen looking for a nest, a basket will be made and placed high enuf that dogs can't bother her. Usually, the rooster is picked up and placed in the nest basket first and shows the hen where it is. The hen will move into this nest about 5 feet above the ground and begin laying eggs there.

The chicken can vary its, shall we say, orientation in nesting and roosting depending on the environment. Easiest in a coop has to be roosts high and nests low.

Steve

 

[mmtillman]