What the Pluck is All that Racket?

[BillM2]

This morning, our dominant Barred Rock hen was having fits. I set up two nesting boxes for my 6 hens last week and noticed this morning that a hen had pulled out most of the straw in the boxes. I thought I would add some more straw. Enter the hen in question, and she begins making a huge racket, climbing into the boxes and then out, etc. I'm guessing she didn't like what I had done.

All the hens are approaching the 6 month age mark but this one seems most interested in the nesting boxes. I thought the boxes I made for them might me too small, so I added another larger one to the coop. When this hen saw this box, she began her racket. She's now settled down somewhat but I can't have this noise as they're outlaws. If I stand there and hang out, she's quiet for the most part.

Any idea what this means? Is this part of becoming a layer?

 

[scooter147]

It's something new. Being a predatory animal they are very suspectious of anything new or strange. I suspect by now she is already use to it and has quieted down.

You do know that some hens really raise a racket after they lay and egg? So if they are outlaws they may eventually give you away doing what you have them for. Good luck.

 

[BillM2]

Looks like all that racket was a hen about to lay her first egg and I must've messed up her nests by adding straw! One smallish brown speckled egg. One down, five to go.

 

[ardagh23]

My Hens all have recently started laying. They've also become VERY vocal and noisy at the same time. I'm a newbie to chickens but I'm certain this is normal behavior when they first start laying or maybe every time they lay eggs?

 

[PeepPeeps]

When ever one lays an egg she'll cackle, then everyone else will join in. Mine usually stop after five or ten minutes. But the more you have the louder they are. And if you have six birds it'll happen six times a day. Some chickens are louder than others too. But it's not something that goes away with time.