Why enclosed "privacy" nest boxes?

[andycowboy]

OK, I've gone through a lot of posts with nesting box ideas. Something popping up pretty frequently is a comment here and there, and/or pics, about curtains over the front of the box, doors that close and give the hen privacy...until now, I hadn't heard of doing this. What is the purpose of providing "privacy", when should it be done (like the incubator lockdown the last 3 days?), and is it a necessity. Researching now for raising a small flock of Buckeyes in the near future - the chicks are here so I have a while before I have to worry about the hatching process - they're only a few days old, so I don't expect to see any eggs until the 3rd - 4th week of September...sound right?

Have a great day, and God bless!

 

[Judy]

I've read of using curtains to discourage egg eating, not so much for privacy, because they darken the box. I've actually never seen any indication they care about privacy for egg laying. Certainly sometimes two will lay in the same nest at the same time. Sometimes they want another hen to go away when they lay, but with mine I've more gotten the feeling they are being protective of their egg. They do have personalities, though -- maybe some do care more about privacy than we realize.