So I've been waiting for Lacy, my SLW to lay for weeks. She's about 6 months old, and has been fire engine red for at least 3 weeks now, maybe more. I'm a stay at home dad, so I watch them often. She hasn't spent any time checking out the laying boxes, so I figure it was still a while away. Until yesterday, when I saw her nesting...not in the laying box. I have a tarp going from the top of my rubbermaid shed to the ground at an angle, where I keep our river tubes and firewood...some outside toys and some hay. There she sat, in the middle of one of the tubes in a pile of hay, nesting. So she was only there a few minutes, and when I checked no eggs. I had hoped she was just hanging out.
But here we are today, and she's back there. That's after keeping them in the run/coop until after noon, hoping that if she was going to lay, it would be in a laying box. I'm having my doubts now. So when you see a hen, a brand new layer, apparently laying where she shouldn't be...what's the strategy to stop her? Do I chase her out of there? Go pick her up and put her in the laying box? Leave her be and just be happy I know where she's laying? Really not wanting to go on easter egg hunts daily, but she looks so cute..don't want to disturb her either! Here she is....
But here we are today, and she's back there. That's after keeping them in the run/coop until after noon, hoping that if she was going to lay, it would be in a laying box. I'm having my doubts now. So when you see a hen, a brand new layer, apparently laying where she shouldn't be...what's the strategy to stop her? Do I chase her out of there? Go pick her up and put her in the laying box? Leave her be and just be happy I know where she's laying? Really not wanting to go on easter egg hunts daily, but she looks so cute..don't want to disturb her either! Here she is....
