# nest and eggs



## Threechickens (Sep 30, 2012)

Hello everyone. I have 3 chickens who all are laying eggs. The problem I have is they will not lay in the nest box. They are around 8 months old. At first they would lay right across from the nest box. I moved the box to were they was laying. Then they laid right next to the box. I put two golf balls in. Nothing. I went on line and got two wooden eggs ( you can't tell them from the real eggs, I may have to get a dozen to give away as a gag. LOL ) and put in there. They roll the eggs out of the nest ( can a chicken pick up a egg with it's foot? ) and lay there eggs with them. I would like for them to lay in there nest box, any ideas on what else I could try?


----------



## Heathers (Sep 29, 2012)

I am so very new to this but does the bedding you have in the nesting box contribute to that?


----------



## fuzziebutt (Aug 7, 2012)

Threechickens, I LOVE the idea of getting a dozen just to give away later!! Funny!! They can move eggs with their feet, and can lift them with the foot and beak at one time. I had a broody that would steal eggs, and ended up sitting on about 15 before I realised what she was doing. She hatched eggs for 2 weeks!! She was goofy.

Do they sleep in the nest boxes? If they do, then you have to stop that. If they don't, then it could just be a control issue, and you have lost control!


----------



## Heathers (Sep 29, 2012)

Fuzzy if they don't sleep in the box then where or how do they sleep? Oh man I'm learning more and hahaha


----------



## fuzziebutt (Aug 7, 2012)

They should roost. There should be roosts built for them, anywhere from a foot to clear up in the rafters for them. If they can fly, then they like to go as high as they can. If they aren't in a coop, they will roost in trees. If they try to sleep in the nest boxes, they will poop all in them, and get them really nasty. There is a thread on down in the forum about this very problem. The person has to block the nest boxes at night to keep the chickens from getting in them.


----------



## Threechickens (Sep 30, 2012)

I use straw in the coop and also in nest boxes. I don't think they sleep in the nest box. I give them fresh water and feed early in am ( 4:30 am ) before I go to work, and they are lined up on the roost. 
I have a lot of straw in coop. I wonder if maybe I have to much. I don't want them to break any eggs. I understand that once they learn to break and eat the eggs, you can not stop them from doing 
that.The nest box is a few inches of floor. Thanks for the responses


----------



## fuzziebutt (Aug 7, 2012)

Well, welcome to Chicken Forum, Threechickens!! I didn't even notice that these were your first posts! I sure hope we see you around alot more, and we love pictures!


----------



## cogburn (Jul 16, 2012)

The commercial made nest boxes have a fold up feature to close off the nests from night time til morning, I have a couple of 2 hole nests, metal box types on the outside of the run for the big hens to lay in during the day. And a homemade 4 hole wooden box in the coop/run and I've recently added 22 pullets to run and they are starting to roost in boxes at night, as a matter of fact tomorrow I have to add a fold up bar to deter them from messing up the boxes at night.


----------



## Roslyn (Jun 21, 2012)

The girls are telling you that they don't like the nest box for whatever reason. Look at both places and maybe have a more open nest box that keeps the eggs in one place, but meets their approval. 

Yes, I have had hens roll fake eggs out of the nest. I tried easter eggs, the plastic ones, I tried golf balls, wooden eggs. Nope, none of them fooled the girls!! They would bend over and roll the offender out with their beaks and then lay the egg where they wanted. The ONLY thing that fooled them was when I bought fake eggs online that were ceramic. I had to mark these with a sharpie because they also fooled my husband and when he collected eggs he kept bringing them inside.


----------



## Threechickens (Sep 30, 2012)

Hi Everybody
I am thinking about just making a square box and putting it in there and see what happens.Just use some 2x4's. 
I guess there is no chicken rule that states that they must have sides and a roof on the box. 
question: can you over feed your chickens, The reason I ask is I keep them in the run all day while I am at work.
On days off I let them run the back yard. When they are locked up all day they really eat the food up. when running the back yard
they eat about 1/3 of the food. I watch them and doesn't seem like they really eat much, just pecking the ground here and there. 
another question: Does anybody train there chickens to do tricks?


----------



## Lady_Alia (Jul 11, 2012)

I keep food out for mine all day. 
I'm sure you could probably train them. 
And for my nest box I have one long box, it's not divided. 
There are no set rules. Just do what works for you and your flock!


----------



## wisker (Feb 28, 2013)

hello, i had a problem with egg eating so i built a nesting box whitch it started out as a plan box about 8 foot long 12inches wide,1 foot 9 inches high,6inches above the floor i built anouther floor,put dividers in on the top floor 12 inches apart,drilled 3 inch hole in the center of each space for egg to drop trough,put a door at the bottom section so i can collect the eggs once dropped,add sawdust to bottom to protect eggs add hay in a nest like circle in spaces add a roof and problem solved,works perfect and birds cant get the eggs anymore, and as far as getting them to lay there,if you provide the right space,not to much,not to little they will usually start on there own,cleanness is a plus,and golf balls work to.....


----------

