What time do you let your hens out of the coop?

[smsabean]

I like to keep mine shut in until i'm sure they are done laying for the day. Once they get in a habit of laying inside they will return to the pen to lay even if they run loose outside. It's a good idea to train them right at first , if not you may find eggs all over the barnyard. Then it's hard to break them of that habit. Mine run outside all summer but now I keep them penned until mid- afternoon.

 

[fiberart57]

My girls are 20 weeks old and no eggs as of yet. As a matter of fact, I don't even see signs that they're thinking about laying. However, I am worried. I used to let them out for a few hours when I got home from work but I'm don't think that will work any more. I leave for work at 7:00 am and don't return until 5:30. I hate to rely on neighbors to let them out so I usually let them out in the morning before I leave. But it's still dark sometimes and it comes on dark much earlier. Their pen is minimum requirements; 10 sq. ft. per bird but I think they're healthier running about in the fenced yard. They have four "hang out" spots and I've checked for eggs and found none. So today, I put the unused dog house near one of their hangouts and put shavings in it so they may lay there.

Am I setting myself up for trouble? They have nest boxes with golf balls in them and have had for about 10 weeks. I've watched their routines and they wander back into the run and sometimes the coop (they have to go up a ramp) several times during the day.

I just was hoping to avoid random egg laying locations with the dog house.

Mary

 

[Crittercrzy]

I leave mine up til around 4ish..I let them out as soon as I get home..I have 1 hen that litterally RUNS to the barn to lay her egg..all the others lay in their nest boxes..

 

[ams3651]

Quote:
Do you have a run on your coop? If you do and its secure, let them out in the morning and dont worry about it. I let mine out into the yard around 5pm for a little while to scratch around and they go back in between 6 and 7 on their own but the door to their run is always open and they can come and go all day. I wouldnt mess with anything but the nest boxes. 20 weeks is still a little early for some breeds, every chicken in different. Wait and let them learn to use the nest boxes. Too many options may confuse them.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

“What time do you let your hens out of the coop?”

When they start YELLING” at me at 6:30 in the morning.

Then it is a dash for the treats and to look in the mirror to make sure I am decent …just in case…

Reading some of the post here, I just realized something. Some people say they are not getting eggs at twenty weeks and they are keeping their hens confined. Just a thought here. ... but your birds may be laying and the others maybe eating the eggs. They can do a pretty decent job of cleaning up shells and all and you would never know it.

Of course, I am home all day so I am able to watch and check the nests boxes quite often. Sometimes the little devils even come to the back door to get me when they want to lay and I have to accompany them back to the box before they will get in it.

Go figure!

Of course, I have more than one nest box set up and of course, all three want to use that same box. The other day nest box number one was occupied, and my Jersey Giant was going berserk. I put her in the other box (right next to nest box one) and held her there for a minute or two talking to her. Then I slipped away and that is where she laid her egg.

God… I feel like an underpaid “shrink”.

OMG!

It is 6:30 and I can already hear the "call of the wild". Bye!

 

[shaggy]

5:30pm on weekdays
8:30am on weekends (after i mow the lawn)


they get an hour a day free range time on weekdays and 8 hours on weekends

 

[wherethebuffaloroam]

IT WORKED!!!! We kept them in the coop until 11am and WE GOT OUR FIRST EGG!! Dont you just love it when a plan works?? Now I wonder, how many eggs are hidden somewhere

 

[Tala]

I really only let mine out when I'm home, which is in the evenings.
The other day they had all 3 laid an egg by noon though.

 

[Hozer]

My friend does not let his chickens out until the afternoon for other reasons.

He feels that hawks and eagles do most of their hunting in the morning.

I only let mine out when I am outside. There are too many eagles and dogs around. Otherwise, they have a good sized run.

Oh, BTW, the neighbor boy knocked on our door last week all out of breath and said a hawk got caught in the herring net I have covering my run (it was early in the morning). The hawk got himself loose.

 

[djackjr]

Mine get let out of the coop and into their run when I get up anywheres from 8:00 am till noon. Depending howmuch gaming I did the night before....