Hi all, my chickens are not willing to lay in the nesting boxes and lay outside the run, is there parasites in the run? I'm keeping them inside their run for a week and if things don't improve then what can I do?
Parasites such as lice or mites would also be seen on the chickens, and you can look at the skin under the vents and elswhere for tiny red or beige bugs, or the nits or eggs You could clean out the nests, spray with a little permethrin 10% spray, and replace with clean bedding. Do you have a picture of your nest boxes or can you describe them? Some hens can be picky, or they prefer a dark quiet spot for laying. How many nests do you have and how many hens? I have had a snake get into my coop before, and sometimes a hen will go around and terrorize the other hens to get them out of their nests, then go on to the next one. You may need to keep them in the coop say, at least till noon, and spend some time observing their behavior to figure it out. I get tickled when I open a cube of pine shavings on the floor, and everyone wants to get into it to lay an egg. They can be funny little creatures.
