The Poultry Keeper

milkmaid · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 7165 Location: isle of lewis

ok you lot , my cousin just phoned me and asked how do i stop my hens from nesting in my laying boxes (as if i'd know ) . Question

mine just sort of aways perched ,so any ideas ,i did ask if the perch was higher than the laying boxes ,but any other ideas ,he says it's dark in the house ,could they not see the perch ,i will give him the address ,but he'll probably tell you what i'm really like and at the moment you don't seem that think i'm totally mad .or do you Confused

suz

debcat · Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2005 11:27 pm Post subject:

ROFLMAO
the only thing I know to try is take them out once they've settled for the night and put them on the perch's till eventually they have got the idea.
Don't know how long it's supposed to take though.
Mine don't even lay in the nest box let alone sleep in them.
Debs

jaydee67 · Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2005 11:33 pm Post subject:

Some people hang strips of feed bag or hessian in front of the nest boxes to stop the birds perching on the front of the nest box at night - also gives the hens privacy for laying! Other than the above advice from Debs - I can't help any more. Good luck at keeping him from spilling all the beans!

nigel · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 6:42 am Post subject:

I just kept moving mine out of the nest box onto the roosting bars. It takes a couple of weeks, but I honestly believe chickens prefer to roost and once they've got the hang of it, they do it on their own. You just have to persevere and be patient they're not the fastest learners in the world. Unless it involves food!

Nigel

Lisa · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2005 6:56 am Post subject:

Another idea, if you are around at the time, it so block off the nest boxes just before the chooks go to bed and open them up in the morning when they are let out. Just something temporary like a bit of cardboard should do the trick. If they can't get in they have to look for somewhere else to sleep...

pollypekin · Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Posts: 183 Location: Kent

A couple of my hens try to sleep in the nestbox every night. To stop this, I close the nestbox door, then re-open it later when they are all asleep on the perches Smile

However, tonight, I have forgotten, so early wake-up call in the morning, otherwise they'll be eggs everywhere on the floor Sad

milkmaid · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 7165 Location: isle of lewis

i'll have to phone him and see how it's going ,he spent ages making the hen house ,
suz

tinacam · Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Posts: 37 Location: London

2 of my ex batts sleep in the nest box. I've tried covering the boxes, but they then choose to sleep on the floor - underneath the 2 perching - YUK - you get the picture! I've tried lifting them on the perches, but no, down they jump.

I just leave them be now, and clear the nest boxes of poo every morning.

When they move into the new coop when it's finished, I'll persevere with perching again.

summayah · Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Posts: 4289 Location: luton

what about taking the nest boxes out at night or late afternoon, so they will have more floor space to sit overnight?

milkmaid · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 7165 Location: isle of lewis

i don't know if he can do that ,i think picking them up and putting them on a perch is helping a little
suz

moldirox · Joined: 17 May 2005 Posts: 47 Location: west midlands

None of my four ex batts will perch. I have given up trying with them cos when I put them on it they just wobble precariously on the perch and fall to the floor and crash into the nest boxes and I feel like a cruel Mom! They can all sleep in the nest boxes now. Embarassed

Lisa · Posted: Sat May 21, 2005 7:22 pm Post subject:

Perches do vary at lot... I wonder changing the perch might help?

Some I've seen in ready made chicken houses look quite narrow to me, and the edges aren't rounded off much... And some are rather high, some are quite low. Some look rather close to a wall of the coop to me, or the roof of the house... I assume chickens all have preferences like we do Rolling Eyes

If I had a chicken that wouldn't perch and I wanted it to perch for some reason (eg mucky bum causing sore skin, or causing mucky eggs in the nest box) then I would make it a low, wide, smooth perch and try that.

Maybe even try to encourage it to jump on and off the perch in the day time by following a tasty treat?

Off course, if the non-perching isn't a problem, then its a lot of bother to go to for no reason. But that's the only other things I can think of if I had to do something...

summayah · Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Posts: 4289 Location: luton

in the house that I bought, the perch was narrow end up and slightly rounded ~ about 12" off the floor. They all seem happy with it but I worry about the slightly larger ladies in the troop ~ marigold the orpington spring to mind. So, in the shed I'm still getting together I've made the perch wide ways for them and only about 8inches off the floor. Hoping they will like that one!!
I notice when they are outside in the garden they will often perch on all kinds of stuff. We did some hard landscaping with long tree branches ~ they love those, but they will also sit on the narrow slats around the compost heap.
Like Lisa says maybe try some lower wider perches, just so that they can keep their bums out of the poo. Have you thought of closing off the nesting boxes at night? See if that works for them