Wont' you PLEASE use the nice nest box?

[newchicksnducks]

We have 15 chickens, 3 at 22 weeks, 7 at 17 weeks, 5 at 12 weeks. One of the 22 week old EE has started to lay eggs - Yeah! She laid a beautiful tan egg on Friday (on the coop floor) then took the weekend off She then laid another cute tan and dark specked egg today (Monday) - again on the floor, but in another spot. We have 4 beautiful nest boxes, 12x12x12 with perches outside the boxes. We painted the boxes a dark green (leftover paint) to give that dark, cozy look everyone says they favor. The bottom two are about a 18" off the ground, the other two above them. They have shavings on the bottom of the boxes, and one or two plastic eggs that have been weighted to make them feel more "real". Will she figure out where she is supposed to lay? At least she goes into the coop for the lay, but it would be so much nicer not to have to do the egg hunt. Any suggestions?

 

[Happy Chooks]

I put in your other thread that my BO took a week to make it to the nesting boxes. She'll get there.

Besides, with 15 chickens, SOMEBODY is bound to make it to the boxes when they start laying and the rest will copy. I haven't seen any of my chickens do things by themselves. One does something, and well, the rest are like flies on manure.

Oooooh, look at this great place this hen put her egg in. It must be safe, I'll lay my egg here too, then it will be safe. Then I'll make a heck of a racket announcing that I've put my egg there. Chicken logic......go figure.

 

[#1California Chick]

 

[S&SPoultryExchange]

You can use plastic white or brown eggs or painted wooden eggs. They sale these at some stores just for this reason. The chickens will see the eggs and go to lay there.

 

[Poopie]

Im still pretty new to this whole thing, but I got some good advice from reading all these posts here. My first egg was also on the coop floor, the second was outside in the pen, I tried the golf ball trick and since have had all my eggs in the nests. They are not all laying as of yet, (I assume 5 out of 8 as we got 5 eggs yesterday). But DH thought I was yet again "crazy" for trying this....It seemed to work for me. He still tells me we will need to open up the 3rd box, right now we are using just 2, I keep telling him all the "experts" on here say we will not need the 3, so Im going with that. They will get the hang of it sure enough.

 

[newchicksnducks]

OK, thanks, I guess it's patience again. I only have the one girl laying, so maybe when the others start, they'll use the boxes and she'll get on board with it all. I do have one or two eggs in each nest box, so hopefully they'll get the hang of it soon. We may change the location of the boxes, as it currently is near a window. Maybe if I change the location to the other side of the coop, it'll be cozier. (But then instead of being next to the window, the open side of the box will face the window. The only other location would be under the droppings board...not gonna happen! lol I'll give it a few more days and see how things go. Thanks again for all the help!

 

[cmjust0]

Our pullets are ignoring their nest boxes, too... I collected 8 eggs off the floor of the coop, marked them with sharpies, and put them in the boxes...

Nothing.

Still the same 8 eggs in 8 boxes. They're all basically a foot cubed, up off the ground, dark and cozy, nice bit of hay in the bottom, a lip off the front for them to walk and peek inside. Been about a week so far and I don't even think anybody's even ventured inside one yet.

I think our chickens are particularly stoopid, though, frankly.. Of 28, only a handful ever venture outside and those that do are prone to wander around until after dark, then just hunker down somewhere at random and stay out all night.

 

[SimplyForties]

I have two over-sized nest boxes for 7 hens. The 4 who are laying all use one and the 2 cockerels hang out in the other one!

You never know what the silly birds are going to do!

 

[Happy Chooks]

Did you mess up the nest on the floor? When my BO made a nest on the floor of the coop, I took a stick and messed it up. Not so easy to come back to it, ya know?

 

[wombat]

All of mine have taken to using the nest boxes immediately, no problems ... I got spoiled.

Now I have one from this spring that's just started laying, and she lays any old place on the floor of the coop, lays on the roosts, wherever she feels like it. All the others use the nest boxes, and now I have this one ...

I think I'll try making a small nest box and just putting it on the floor of the coop, and see if she'll use that. I'm afraid the others might too, though ... our nest boxes are high enough off the floor that they stay clean, and I don't really want to encourage use of a poopy nest box on the floor just because of one rebel!