Putting 'fake eggs' in the chicken coop

[SeaShell741]

I used golf balls as well. I put a couple in the nest box before my hens started laying. When they did start laying, they all the eggs were in the nest box.

 

[Sylviaanne]

Just wondering if anyone has any problems with free range chickens not going back to the nesting boxes to lay eggs when they know there are eggs (fake) in the nesting boxes?

I keep my chickens penned up until about 1pm to try to get as many eggs laid in the coop as possible but I'm not getting one egg per hen per day. I am afraid to go walking around my yard, the grass is over grown, mower broken, and I'm afraid of putting my foot right into a nest of eggs. My hens are 1 and 2 years old and all of them are laying because several days a week I do get an egg per day per hen. I have not been leaving the run open because I had adolescent chicks in there but I let them out yesterday and had no problem rounding them back up and into the run. So if I leave the run open where the hens can get in to lay the eggs, I am hoping they will do just that.

 

[Sylviaanne]

Another 3 questions:

Has anyone tried painted eggs? I found some online at Michael's but I think the smell would make the hens avoid them.

Michael's also has a wooden goose egg of plain wood. Would the chickens avoid it because it is bigger than they lay?

Has anyone tried paper mache' eggs?

 

[funny farmer]

We put some pastel colored plastic Easter eggs in our nest boxes. Now my little banty has gone broody and is hovering over her little clutch of pink and purple eggs.

 

[Sylviaanne]

We put some pastel colored plastic Easter eggs in our nest boxes. Now my little banty has gone broody and is hovering over her little clutch of pink and purple eggs.

Are those the pop open kind? If so, how do you keep the chickens from squashing them and causing them to pop open? Thanks.

 

[funny farmer]

a few very small dabs of super glue before closing them. They have held up so far.

 

[Sylviaanne]

Do you put anything in them for weight?

 

[funny farmer]

No. They are empty.

 

[backinthecoop45]

Hi. I'm curious to know how old everyone's chicks are when they start to lay because I've heard that some will start as soon as 15 weeks and some at 20 so I was just wondering.
Thanks

 

[MsDoris]

Fake eggs don't make pullets start to lay, it shows them where they're supposed to lay. They'll lay when they are ready and fake eggs have nothing to do with that.

fakes eggs encourage broodiness.