I didn't mean 'privacy' in terms of modesty. No, chickens are not modest, but they do like to feel like they're hiding when they lay an egg. So if you think about 'privacy' in terms of 'hiding', you'll get my meaning better than simply saying they want to feel 'safe'. There really isn't anything actionable to simply say they want to feel 'safe.'
If you Google 'nest box curtains' that might give you some additional ideas for your nest boxes. The boxes look quite open and the girls might not get that 'I'm hiding' feeling. I have 6 nest boxes: two have curtains (just strips of feed bags stapled to the front), the rest don't; on two, the hen can enter and then turn the corner to go deeper into the box; and the other two are open boxes. All of the boxes are positioned so other chickens loitering in the coop can't simply look in the boxes so there is a sense of 'hiding' -- of 'privacy, if you will -- when a hen goes in a box to lay her egg.
I'm not saying you need to do this. I'm just explaining what works in my situation with the hopes that you might come away with some ideas for your situation.
(If you're in Texas, you should already know all about roof-overs. Do a roof-over on the coop and that'll go a long way toward knocking that interior temp down to make it more tolerable if it gets direct sun.)
If you Google 'nest box curtains' that might give you some additional ideas for your nest boxes. The boxes look quite open and the girls might not get that 'I'm hiding' feeling. I have 6 nest boxes: two have curtains (just strips of feed bags stapled to the front), the rest don't; on two, the hen can enter and then turn the corner to go deeper into the box; and the other two are open boxes. All of the boxes are positioned so other chickens loitering in the coop can't simply look in the boxes so there is a sense of 'hiding' -- of 'privacy, if you will -- when a hen goes in a box to lay her egg.
I'm not saying you need to do this. I'm just explaining what works in my situation with the hopes that you might come away with some ideas for your situation.
(If you're in Texas, you should already know all about roof-overs. Do a roof-over on the coop and that'll go a long way toward knocking that interior temp down to make it more tolerable if it gets direct sun.)
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