Odd behavior - Hen pushing other hen’s egg out of nesting box

[tarnte]

Hello, recently we noticed we got eggs being pushed out of the nesting box. Then we checked our coop camera and saw this odd behavior on one of our hens. She’s a SLW about 1.5 years old. She would push another chicken egg out of the nesting box before she used it. She’s the lowest in the pecking order so she always got to use the nest box last. Anyone knows why she is behaving this way?

We have 2 nesting boxes for 3 hens and they are always free range in our backyard. We are thinking of installing roll away nest soon because of this behavior but still wondering what’s causing her to push others’ eggs out.....

 

[RojoMarz]

She didn't want it in the box...didn't want to crush it...was trying to make her own 'nest' and pushed it out of the way...Mine tend to root around in the nesting box fairly often, trying to make it 'just perfect'.

 

[aart]

Chicken can be weird.
Might need taller front lips on the nests.....
...or roll away nests might be good too.

 

[kerbotx]

Passive-aggressive FU to the other hens? But I shouldn't anthropomorphize...

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't know what that pushing looks like or how consistent it is. How often does this happen? Many hens scratch around in the nest arranging the bedding and everything just right before they settle in to lay. If that is what is going on a higher lip could help. I've had to do that to stop them from scratching fake and real eggs out.

I've never seen a hen deliberately push an egg out of a nest before she laid. I have no idea why one would do that. Usually it is the opposite, many like to lay where others are laying. But each one is an individual with its own personality. Their bird brains don't process logic the same way ours do, let alone the same way another chicken might. That's part of why chicken TV is better than anything on cable, antenna, or satellite.

 

[tarnte]

Yeah it’s really odd. This happens almost every time she went to lay. She didn’t scratch with her feet to roll the egg out. She uses her beak to roll it out of the box. That’s what we seen in the camera. The lip we have in the nest box is about 0.75 inch. We might try with the higher lip as you suggested.

I don't know what that pushing looks like or how consistent it is. How often does this happen? Many hens scratch around in the nest arranging the bedding and everything just right before they settle in to lay. If that is what is going on a higher lip could help. I've had to do that to stop them from scratching fake and real eggs out.

I've never seen a hen deliberately push an egg out of a nest before she laid. I have no idea why one would do that. Usually it is the opposite, many like to lay where others are laying. But each one is an individual with its own personality. Their bird brains don't process logic the same way ours do, let alone the same way another chicken might. That's part of why chicken TV is better than anything on cable, antenna, or satellite.

 

[aart]

The lip we have in the nest box is about 0.75 inch. We might try with the higher lip as you suggested.

That's nothing.
Go 4-6".