something NEW in my coop!!!!

[goldies99]

merry almost christmas!!!......my chickens have been laying eggs in the 3 next boxes...i have 10 chickens...all but 2 are laying....
all of a sudden for the past 2 days i have an egg on the poop board!...and 1 outside in the yard!.....do you think this is a new chicken
laying and egg??.....do you think she will lay in the next box?....any way to get her to stop laying from the roost???...what makes a chicken do this!!...

 

[CheerioLounge]

Sometimes a new layer will just drop the egg where they are. Once they get used to having this huge object coming out of them, they will be able to control where they lay.

Do you have a fake egg or golf ball in the nesting boxes? For some that works, for others it doesn't. But it's worth a try.

 

[goldies99]

there are always eggs in the box from other chicken laying them....she does lay in the morning...im not sure how early!

 

[octahen]

I'm so glad you asked this, I logged on in order to ask the same thing! I have 5 chickens. 3 are laying, and on Mrs. Brisbee's second day (today) she just let it drop in the MIDDLE of the chicken run!
Sounds like she did it because she's inexperienced haha

 

[goldies99]

haaa.....the first rogue egg i had was outside too!....now they have been on the poop board!!

 

[av8rwife]

We have 7 hens and 4 nest boxes. Unfortunately they don't really use the next boxes, they use a "community nest" in a corner. They will line up (like women do to use a restroom) and stand there until the hen on the nest is done, then the next one sits down for her turn. I have seen 2 hens on the nest at the same time tis a bit comical to say the least. Even when they are waiting their turn they will squalk at the one still on the nest. I sure do love my girls!!!

 

[digitS']

As CheerioLounge says, those pullets are sometimes surprised by the egg and those 1st eggs seem to arrive at most anytime, day or night. In time, the schedule will be more consistent. It is a matter of the other daily goings-on for the chickens. When they get off the roost, when they eat, when the lights fade, etc . . .

It is best if the laying is in a protected location. Often, the chickens seem to ignore the egg if it is outside a nest. Sometimes, it is treated as a "found object" and eaten, however.

The nest is something of a sacred location, certainly compared to just out in the run. You can also take measures to discourage any eating of eggs in a nestbox. I have done a couple things to encourage their use.

First, I've blocked off a corner where the hens have decided to nest rather than use the proper location.

Also, I've had to "introduce" a new layer to the box. The coop I have now has a ladder that the hens must use to reach the nest. So, there is the process of learning to climb that ladder. That nest at the top of the ladder is a wonderful place, however! I've made the joke that I was thinking of putting up lace curtains and providing pillows

. Once they get in there, they discover how comfortable and secluded it is. Once out, they may forget how they got there and need to be picked up and put back the next day. It usually hasn't taken long before they realize the value of a nestbox.

Leaving eggs in the box is risky. Sometimes, there's a lot of activity and an egg may be broken. Once again, that may invite a very bad response - eating the egg.

Steve

 

[goldies99]

i never leave eggs in the nest box...i collect them as soon as the chicken is out...but sometimes in the morning there are 2 or 3 eggs already in there...
and i know they have ALL seen other chickens laying eggs in there.....i have seen them wait their turn to get in the same box instead of using another!....
i just hope who ever IS using the roost, makes it to a nest box soon!!!!...i havent had any eggs eaten or broken eggs yet!

 

[digitS']

Goldie', my first hen was named Goldie.

That was partly because she was gold and partly because she was given to me by my grandmother. Lots of people called my grandmother, "Goldie"

.

You can see a picture of my 1st chicken taken waaaay back in the Pleistocene, when I was a kid. The picture is on my BYC page.

Steve

 

[goldies99]

love that pic steve!..........goldie