Not laying in nest box

[city_girl_farming]

My pullet/hen finally started laying but not in the nest boxes. I have another post under coop modifications as I know my coop is tight for space and not ideal. Should I bring the nest box out to the yard/run or leave it in the coop and just lower it to the floor?
The reason why we made it tall is so they don’t try to sleep in them. We have 2 month old chicks that may want to sleep in them. I found one egg in a corner of the coop that’s completely shattered I think she laid it while she was roositing. I found another smaller egg in the middle of the yard this morning and it was pecked. Any advice to help things temporarily while we made coop modifications??

Also I was told she was a cinnamon queen on another post but she’s laying light blue eggs. Any idea what breed?

 

[dearmeghann]

Do they seem interested in the nesting boxes at all? Maybe put a few fake eggs inside and see if they get nosy.

Laying eggs on the roost can happen, especially when they're first laying.

Are they hopping up on the roosts okay? Do you think they'd like a ramp? We had to create a little walkway and extra ramps for our buff orpington. She has spacial awareness issues - aka she's afraid to jump up if she doesn't have a football field amount of space available, haha!

Last question, how's the temperature inside the coop during the day?

 

[nuthatched]

Do you have any golf balls?
If she is laying keep a close eye on her, her pelvis may not be fully developed yet and is a candidate for egg binding

 

[city_girl_farming]

Do they seem interested in the nesting boxes at all? Maybe put a few fake eggs inside and see if they get nosy.

Laying eggs on the roost can happen, especially when they're first laying.

Are they hopping up on the roosts okay? Do you think they'd like a ramp? We had to create a little walkway and extra ramps for our buff orpington. She has spacial awareness issues - aka she's afraid to jump up if she doesn't have a football field amount of space available, haha!

Last question, how's the temperature inside the coop during the day?

Thanks, yes I forgot to mention we did add fake eggs to the boxes. The coop is all new to her and the chicks it’s their 2nd day sleeping there. I don’t see any signs of her trying to nest in the boxes yet. Not sure if they are too high or just not enough room to jump into them? But she is super curious about the coop and has been going in there a lot. I just noticed she laid / made a nest in the corner of the coop where the egg was dropped last. The temperature is a bit hot I’m in LA and it can get in the high 90s in the summer. We are installing a solar fan tonight. Mostly during the day they are outside in the yard though

 

[city_girl_farming]

Thanks, yes I forgot to mention we did add fake eggs to the boxes. The coop is all new to her and the chicks it’s their 2nd day sleeping there. I don’t see any signs of her trying to nest in the boxes yet. Not sure if they are too high or just not enough room to jump into them? But she is super curious about the coop and has been going in there a lot. I just noticed she laid / made a nest in the corner of the coop where the egg was dropped last. The temperature is a bit hot I’m in LA and it can get in the high 90s in the summer. We are installing a solar fan tonight. Mostly during the day they are outside in the yard though

Also yes, she is hoping onto the roosts fine and seems like she hops down and lands on top of the nest boxes. So it seems like the space is ok?? The chicks still haven’t learned to roost I think they’r still sleeping on the floor.

 

[dearmeghann]

Sweet girl, she's trying to figure it out, haha! Do you have anything you can put there for right now while the weather is warm? How big are the nesting boxes? I couldn't really tell from the photos.

Also, for your 2 month olds - keep putting them on the roosting bars. You'll be surprised by how quickly they figure it out.

 

[city_girl_farming]

Sweet girl, she's trying to figure it out, haha! Do you have anything you can put there for right now while the weather is warm? How big are the nesting boxes? I couldn't really tell from the photos.

Also, for your 2 month olds - keep putting them on the roosting bars. You'll be surprised by how quickly they figure it out.

Yes, we are installing a solar powered fan tonight

The nesting boxes are 12x12x12 and about 3 feet high with a 6 inch lip (followed Joel Salatin’s recommendations)

 

[Ridgerunner]

When some pullets start laying they have complete control of the process. They know where they want to lay and recognize the signs of the egg coming, so they go to the nest and lay. Others don't have control of that process. They have not selected a nest and do not recognize that an egg is coming. They drop it wherever they happen to be, whether on the roost or just walking around. If you consistently find eggs in the same spot they have decided that is their nest.

The egg laying process is pretty complicated. It can take a pullet a few days or even a couple of weeks to get everything straightened out. That includes putting the egg together correctly as well as when and where to lay the egg. To me, it is surprising how many get the whole process correct to start with.

Some people really care how high a nest is, whether their preference is on the coop floor or higher on the wall. From what I've seen chickens don't care that much. If you have a Silkie or another chicken that can't fly height might matter but that pullet can easily get up there if she wants to.

So what can you do? Put a fake egg in a couple of those nests. I use golf balls but you can get wooden or ceramic eggs at a craft store. Sometimes that is enough to get them to use the nest.

Keep any other eggs cleaned up unless they are in a nest. They often (but not always) like to lay where another egg is. That's why we use fake eggs.

I made a couple of my nests so I can lock a hen in them. If a hen has established a nest somewhere else I wait until I can catch her on that nest laying and lock her in a real nest until she lays. That often involves chasing with a fishing net. Most of the time they lay that egg within 30 minutes of being locked in there. Usually it only takes one time for them to switch to the real nest. They probably decide it is a safer place to lay there than where some maniac is going to be chasing them with a fishing net.

Another option is to accept that place as a nest if it is where you can handle that. Either just leave it alone or build a nest and set it over that spot. Some places are not going to be acceptable but some might be.

Also I was told she was a cinnamon queen on another post but she’s laying light blue eggs. Any idea what breed?

Where did you get her? Who called her a Cinnamon Queen?

If you got her from a hatchery, which hatchery? If you got her from a feed store, do you know which hatchery they got their chicks from? If it was from another person, I haven't a clue.

Cinnamon Queen is a marketing name, not a breed. They are a cross between different breeds and colors. Different hatcheries use different breeds/colors to make their Cinnamon Queens. Since she is laying a blue egg she is not a Cinnamon Queen from any of the possible crosses I'm aware of. If you want to call her a Cinnamon Queen you can. If you want to make up a name you can. The chicken police will not be around to arrest you. To me she is probably a mix of something but I don't know what.

I understand it can be important to some people to know breed, marketing name, or some other label, but to me either they work in my flock or they don't. Good luck!

 

[city_girl_farming]

When some pullets start laying they have complete control of the process. They know where they want to lay and recognize the signs of the egg coming, so they go to the nest and lay. Others don't have control of that process. They have not selected a nest and do not recognize that an egg is coming. They drop it wherever they happen to be, whether on the roost or just walking around. If you consistently find eggs in the same spot they have decided that is their nest.

The egg laying process is pretty complicated. It can take a pullet a few days or even a couple of weeks to get everything straightened out. That includes putting the egg together correctly as well as when and where to lay the egg. To me, it is surprising how many get the whole process correct to start with.

Some people really care how high a nest is, whether their preference is on the coop floor or higher on the wall. From what I've seen chickens don't care that much. If you have a Silkie or another chicken that can't fly height might matter but that pullet can easily get up there if she wants to.

So what can you do? Put a fake egg in a couple of those nests. I use golf balls but you can get wooden or ceramic eggs at a craft store. Sometimes that is enough to get them to use the nest.

Keep any other eggs cleaned up unless they are in a nest. They often (but not always) like to lay where another egg is. That's why we use fake eggs.

I made a couple of my nests so I can lock a hen in them. If a hen has established a nest somewhere else I wait until I can catch her on that nest laying and lock her in a real nest until she lays. That often involves chasing with a fishing net. Most of the time they lay that egg within 30 minutes of being locked in there. Usually it only takes one time for them to switch to the real nest. They probably decide it is a safer place to lay there than where some maniac is going to be chasing them with a fishing net.

Another option is to accept that place as a nest if it is where you can handle that. Either just leave it alone or build a nest and set it over that spot. Some places are not going to be acceptable but some might be.


Where did you get her? Who called her a Cinnamon Queen?

If you got her from a hatchery, which hatchery? If you got her from a feed store, do you know which hatchery they got their chicks from? If it was from another person, I haven't a clue.

Cinnamon Queen is a marketing name, not a breed. They are a cross between different breeds and colors. Different hatcheries use different breeds/colors to make their Cinnamon Queens. Since she is laying a blue egg she is not a Cinnamon Queen from any of the possible crosses I'm aware of. If you want to call her a Cinnamon Queen you can. If you want to make up a name you can. The chicken police will not be around to arrest you. To me she is probably a mix of something but I don't know what.

I understand it can be important to some people to know breed, marketing name, or some other label, but to me either they work in my flock or they don't. Good luck!

Thanks! Definitely going to be on the lookout and and put her in the right nests.

I got her from Hoover’s Hatchery, I got their colorful egg layer bunch. People on here on previous posts told me she was a cinnamon queen. I figure she is some sort of Easter egger. I’m always curious to know what breed so I can look them up and learn their temperament and other breed info/facts etc

 

[Ridgerunner]

Looking at your photo and Hoover's colored egg layers I'd guess she is a Starlight Green Egger. What do you think.

https://www.hoovershatchery.com/starlight-green-egger