where's the eggs? HELP!!!

[jackiedon]

We were getting about 5 to 6 eggs a day from DH's chickens before school was out and the first few weeks afterwards. Well I started to free range my polish chickens which are now 14 and 15 weeks old just before school was out. A few weeks ago I decided it was unfair to DH's chickens to be cooped up in a small area so I let them free range.

Now the problem is I can't find the eggs!!! I have to look and look and I find about 3 a day but I know there is more but I can't find them. When we were on vacation my friend was only getting 1 a day and one day she really looked around and found about 2.5 dozen. She did the float test and all were good except for one. I've been looking in the places she found them but they quit laying there.

I don't know what to do. I know my polish should probably start laying in a few weeks so what do I do? They have a place they dust bath and stay cool behind the rabbit pen that has some boards stacked up for a cover. Should I put some nest there? but the goats also lay there to stay cool.

I did find a nest where one of DH white leghorn lay in the high weeds but I've walked through the rest of the area and can't find anything.

So help!!! BTW I have about 20 polish and probably 15 are hens.

jackie

 

[MissPrissy]

I would shut them in a place with nest boxes for a week to teach them where home is. Once they get to used to laying there then let them back out to free range. There is a lot of truth in old sayings like 'chickens coming home to roost'.

 

[chrissieg]

Get some pot eggs and leave them in the nesting boxes (or golf balls). Failing that do you have enough time to trail them? Leave them cooped up until mid morning, then let them loose, they should head straight for where they were laying