How to make nesting boxes more attractive to your hens?

[UpstateChickenDaddy]

Same issue. I have now blocked off two places in the coop. I have ensured the nest boxes are pristine and clean. They are laying in the coop but just won’t go in the boxes despite my fake eggs, even two real eggs now, and more. Becoming complicated. I want them to be in the nesting boxes now while it is winter or they’ll be laying all sorts of places outside.

Addendum: Hallelujah!!! It took a couple real eggs and blocking off everywhere else but one of the girls just laid IN the nesting boxes! Hurrah and good for her.

 

[the old rooster]

I have four hens and 7 soon to be laying pullets, I let my chickens free range and they have been laying in different spots every day, I have nesting boxes that they used to use, but don’t anymore
We have many bushes in the yard and they are really tricky to find the eggs, I have to crawl through leaves, sticks and spider webs to get to a single egg, and I recently thought one of my chickens had disappeared, turns out she was nesting in a bag of straw

What can I do to make the boxes more attractive?

maby the ladies like straw over any other bedding even grass clippings, (you didnt say what was in the nesting boxes) maby try the same material they are using in your yard, also maby try lock down for a week with the new bedding and good size nesting boxes , we use 16w x 20 deep and a roof over head18 inch. also maby some type of branches to duplacate the bushes. Good Luck . your new layers will follow the Older Girls lead . I will be looking for the results on your jurney

 

[ChookaPete]

The only eggs I ever found in the run or on the grass definitely were oops eggs.
From a young hen caught by surprise.

What is an "oops egg"?

 

[Cheekychook12]

maby the ladies like straw over any other bedding even grass clippings, (you didnt say what was in the nesting boxes) maby try the same material they are using in your yard, also maby try lock down for a week with the new bedding and good size nesting boxes , we use 16w x 20 deep and a roof over head18 inch. also maby some type of branches to duplacate the bushes. Good Luck . your new layers will follow the Older Girls lead . I will be looking for the results on your jurney

I did put straw in one of them, but it turns out they like grass the best, I put long pieces curled around in a nest shape and it’s the favourite so far
They also can’t kick it out of the nest
How close do you think this girl is to laying? She’s 17 weeks and growing like wattles and has a red face (the blue one)

 

[old mama hen]

I have four hens and 7 soon to be laying pullets, I let my chickens free range and they have been laying in different spots every day, I have nesting boxes that they used to use, but don’t anymore
We have many bushes in the yard and they are really tricky to find the eggs, I have to crawl through leaves, sticks and spider webs to get to a single egg, and I recently thought one of my chickens had disappeared, turns out she was nesting in a bag of straw

What can I do to make the boxes more attractive?

I have 20 hens and what I did was keep them in the pen, which is large, for about 10 days after they started laying. I have nesting boxes filled with flakes. I add or change flake out regularly. All of them come back to the nests to lay. I just go out in the evening and lock the pen and in the morning to turn them loose.

 

[Alilbit88]

Is it in a clean “safe” spot? I regularly clean mine out. Sometimes there’s poop and crushed eggs. I make sure it’s dry and clean in a quiet safe spot.i use nesting pads from amazon which is 10 for $20. It’s soft and dry. They like it.

 

[ChookaPete]

I did put straw in one of them, but it turns out they like grass the best, I put long pieces curled around in a nest shape and it’s the favourite so far
They also can’t kick it out of the nest
How close do you think this girl is to laying? She’s 17 weeks and growing like wattles and has a red face (the blue one)

I do not know. You just have to wait and see.

 

[rosemarythyme]

How close do you think this girl is to laying? She’s 17 weeks and growing like wattles and has a red face (the blue one)

Still a while out I think, she's not very red yet and the comb/wattles aren't large and swollen.

 

[Cheekychook12]

Still a while out I think, she's not very red yet and the comb/wattles aren't large and swollen.

Alright
The lavender chickens preferred nesting spot is plastic bag or random plastic tubs

 

[BDutch]

What is an "oops egg"?

An egg from a young hen who didn’t feel it coming. Didn’t understand what the ‘I feel some something strange/pressure in my poop area ’ meant.

Older hens seem to know and can keep it up for a while, if they want to postpone to lay the egg. Sometimes a hen waits in front of her favourite nestbox if its occupied by another hen.