Teaching the girls to use a nesting box

[Balloonjuice]

My youngest chickens are 24 weeks old. They should be laying this time of year. But I was only getting a couple of eggs a day. So it occurred to me that they were laying in the woods -- we let them free range -- but I wasn't going to hike through 30 acres of underbrush looking for hen's eggs. Well, last Thursday my doctor released me to 100% full duty after my stent procedure. Today seemed like a good day to get up in the rafters of the hen house to clean it out. Yeah, they roost up there. It was filthy. Good thing I had a dust mask.

I quit counting at 150 eggs, but I'm estimating probably closer to 200 in the topmost area. Does anybody know how to keep them from laying up there? I really don't want to climb up there every day unless I have to. The nest boxes are nice and clean and full of pine shavings. Why would they prefer to use the rafters to lay their eggs?

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

It may help if you post a photo or at least a description of the interior of your coop - specifically to what sort of setup it is that is allowing them access to the rafters *and* providing a place up there for laying. The desire to go into the rafters for roosting, etc. is instinctual for them as it is the highest point they can get to in there - but it sounds like more than just being bare rafters there must be some sort of insulation or other solid materiel up there for htem to be able to be nesting/laying. Knowing what you are working with will be key in suggestions to change the outcome.
Now - what is your nest box set-up like? Again, photos are best, description will work. Something is making the rafters more attractive than the nest boxes - if we can pinpoint that we can help you change their minds. How many boxes do you have/how many birds, are they wall mounted/freestanding/on the floor, what are they lined with, etc.?

 

[Balloonjuice]

Mare, thanks for the reply. After thinking about it some, I think I'll stretch either hardware cloth or chicken wire across the access to the area where they've been laying. If they can't get in there, maybe they'll use the nesting boxes?

 

[redfordchick]

I want to see pics! lol. I'm realizing my nest boxes are not big enough for many of my pullets.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Mare, thanks for the reply. After thinking about it some, I think I'll stretch either hardware cloth or chicken wire across the access to the area where they've been laying. If they can't get in there, maybe they'll use the nesting boxes?

That's where I was going to go depending on how easy/hard it would be to make that modification and/or if there was some reason it would not be an option for you. Make the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy - once access to where you don't want them laying is taken out of the equation they will start looking for a new place to lay. This is when making the nest boxes attractive comes into play - toss in a little "bait" (golf balls, wooden eggs, etc.) and they'll have the idea of where you want your eggs to be left. Just as with them collecting all those eggs up in the rafters, seeing that someone else has left her eggs in those funny boxes will tell the next in line that it has the "good coop-keeping stamp of approval".

 

[aart]

My youngest chickens are 24 weeks old. They should be laying this time of year. But I was only getting a couple of eggs a day. So it occurred to me that they were laying in the woods -- we let them free range -- but I wasn't going to hike through 30 acres of underbrush looking for hen's eggs. Well, last Thursday my doctor released me to 100% full duty after my stent procedure. Today seemed like a good day to get up in the rafters of the hen house to clean it out. Yeah, they roost up there. It was filthy. Good thing I had a dust mask.

I quit counting at 150 eggs, but I'm estimating probably closer to 200 in the topmost area. Does anybody know how to keep them from laying up there? I really don't want to climb up there every day unless I have to. The nest boxes are nice and clean and full of pine shavings. Why would they prefer to use the rafters to lay their eggs?

OMGosh!!!!!

Was going to suggest the same thing you and Ol Grey Mare came up with.