Hen seems suddenly anxious to use nest box

[FowlProtector]

here’s another thing i’ve caught her doing which is why I’m suspicious of the nesting as well View attachment 4052362

It seems like she’s trying to build a hidden nest, which could mean she’s looking for a safe and private place to lay her eggs. Her pacing and frantic behavior near the fence show she might be feeling anxious or stressed about using the provided nesting boxes. Maybe she’s looking for a more secluded spot, which is common for hens. Have you thought about adding more nesting sites or boxes that might give her a more private place to lay her eggs?

 

[Sofainthefog]

It seems like she’s trying to build a hidden nest, which could mean she’s looking for a safe and private place to lay her eggs. Her pacing and frantic behavior near the fence show she might be feeling anxious or stressed about using the provided nesting boxes. Maybe she’s looking for a more secluded spot, which is common for hens. Have you thought about adding more nesting sites or boxes that might give her a more private place to lay her eggs?

I haven’t looked into it. like an area separate from the coop?

 

[aart]

I did while they were learning but since they all seemed to have caught on I took them out. Like I said she WAS laying in the boxes for at least 3-4 weeks before this started.

Did she stop laying in the nests when you took the fake eggs out?
Even if it doesn't correlate, I'd put the fake eggs back into the nests.
I keep 1 or 2 in each nest for 10+ years now, can help 'spread the love'.

 

[Bawkbok]

Can you build or place a nesting box somewhere in the yard outside the coop area? Put a fake egg in it and perhaps she will claim that as her own private nesting area. This assumes you don't have a dog that would disturb her during her laying periods.

 

[newchickmomma83]

Do you have fake or nest eggs in the nest boxes?

Does that help the hens lay better? I put a couple an egg from the store in 2 of my nesting boxes for 2 days trying to get them to lay and it didn't work.

 

[aart]

Does that help the hens lay better? I put a couple an egg from the store in 2 of my nesting boxes for 2 days trying to get them to lay and it didn't work.

It won't make them lay, it just shows them where to lay.
...and not a good idea to use real eggs

 

[newchickmomma83]

It won't make them lay, it just shows them where to lay.
...and not a good idea to use real eggs

Ok thanks! I took them out the other day

 

[BigBlueHen53]

here’s another thing i’ve caught her doing which is why I’m suspicious of the nesting as well View attachment 4052362

First, this is a lovely pic! You might think about entering it into a contest although I think usually they want them in landscape format.

Second, if your little hen is wanting privacy, have you considered hanging curtains in front of the nests? I don't think I've seen anyone suggest that yet.

Third, golf balls make great "fake eggs." The hens find them quite believable but they won't fool YOU, especially if you get the nice neon pink or yellow ones, and if you have to poke around under a hen, you can tell them from real eggs by texture!

 

[ChookaPete]

What in particular would be helpful? I was wondering if this could be a breed thing. She paces around the fence and seems frantic, I think because she can't fly over the fence anymore. Her sister was the one I caught actually out of the yard, but the nest I found in the front yard had 2 eggs, so it had happened at least once before and they both have flown onto the roof of their run so I suspect she also had done it at some point.

Some chickens are fussy about where they lay.


I have a chook who was extremely fussy when she started laying. She would fly over the backyard fence to the patio, to lay her daily egg on a patio chair.

I did not realise this at first. I saw she had 'escaped' from the backyard, so I put her back. She did the same thing - paced back and forth, was frantic, anxious. She got over the fence and straight to the patio chair.

After a clutch of eggs, she went broody on that chair. Twenty-one days later...

I have since swapped the chair with a tent and she is content with that to raise chicks in.

 

[ChookaPete]

I also will say the isbars are definitely my most vocal and dramatic of the bunch lol. they scream just for the heck of it sometimes so I could be misinterpreting her behavior as more “distressed” than it is

I wonder if my Leghorn cross is like that sometimes...