Young lady hens laying irregularly

[KodiakKluckers]

We have 7 chickens that just started laying. The eggs are small but have quite a nice shell. They are choosing to lay in strange places and are very irregular. The first day we got 5 eggs then 3 then 4 the day after that now today only 1. I have seen discrepancies in how deep the boxes should be, and they don't seem to like theirs. Is this normal of new hens to lay every third day or so and be so irregular? They get good greens (spinach and vegetable or fruit snacks) and a good organic feed the feed store recommended for their age. Any insight out there on the pattern of laying?

 

[newmarch2014]

Irregularity for a couple weeks is not uncommon. Try putting some golf balls or fake eggs in the nest to tell them where the good spot is (chickens are followers and figure if one hen laid there it is probably a good spot) .

 

[KodiakKluckers]

Too funny! Ok, we have some golf balls. They don't seem to like their boxes though and they're fairly shallow, like 5-6" deep and I see a wide variation in how deep they're supposed to be. Anything from 6" to 18" pops up in reading. How deep should they really be?

 

[newmarch2014]

My own nesting box is the kind that just out of the coop, it is literally 3 inches deep but it is pretty private, it is a little dark since it is not shined on through the window, it is away from the pop door so it feels private to them. That is more the need than deepness. Some hens don't mind a crate in a corner, others want a cubby free from prying eyes.

 

[newmarch2014]

I guess my description of my nest box seemed weird, it is plenty big, about 18 in by 13 in with a top and 3 sides so they access it from the completely open coop side but the opening only has a 3 inch lip to keep the eggs and straw inside.