Hen Nesting Boxes
Hen nesting boxes are a way of organizing your hens and their business of egg-laying. If you do not provide nesting boxes, you could find eggs everywhere as if you were at an “Easter Egg Hunt”. You wouldn’t know where they were laid, or how fresh they were.
Organize your chicken coop with nesting boxes on one side, inside the chicken coop. Hens will inately seek a nesting box to be quiet, and finish the process of laying their egg. Nesting boxes afford them a quiet, clean space to relax, and lay their egg undisturbed..
I have six nesting boxes in my chicken coop, in two rows of three. The first row is mounted off of the chicken coop floor at 18″, and the second row begins at 36″ off of the chicken coop floor. My nesting boxes are a little larger than is necessary because I have the room and my chickens are the larger, heavier breeds. In the photos, my nesting boxes are 16″ wide, 14″ deep, and heights at 18″ high and 12″ high, respectively.
Julia In A Nesting Box Laying An Egg
Make sure your nesting boxes are secured to hold the weight of several hens. A minimum size for nesting boxes is 12″w x 12″d x 12″h. If you have the room, make your nesting boxes a little larger for your hens. Nesting boxes can be make out of plywood. I have seen vintage metal hen nesting boxes, that come as one piece or row, at flea markets. The nesting box is open on one side where the hen enters and lays down. Create a little lip on the front of each nesting box so the hen has something to grip on when entering her nesting box, and to prevent eggs from rolling out.
Dry fresh bedding consisting of straw or pine shavings will be comfortable for laying hens, and keep their eggs clean and secure until they are collected. Rotate bedding out on a regular basis to the manure box, for instance, or your compost pile. Hens do not normally dirty their nesting boxes, but clean out any manure droppings, or if an egg has somehow cracked and broken open in the nesting boxes. Broken eggs can attract ants.
Nesting Boxes Positioned Off Of Floor & Along One Side of Coop
Each hen does not lay at the same time, so you do not need to provide a nesting box for every single hen. A rule of thumb I like is to provide at least one nesting box for every 3 hens in your flock. Sometimes you might have a few social hens using one nesting box together. Also, you might find you have a clutch of eggs in one nesting box that several hens have used, one after another.
If you like, you can even track your egg production by writing in a notebook or a journal how many eggs per day you collected, and any other observations. Try and follow a routine for yourself and your hens, by collecting your eggs about the same time each morning or each evening.
Collect your eggs every day from your nesting boxes, either with a nice somewhat insulated basket or even with recycled egg cartons. Be careful not to “clang” your eggs together. Freshly laid eggs are remarkable. They come complete with an invisible protective coating from the hen that keeps them fresh. For that reason, you should not wash or rinse your eggs, unless they have a bit of manure on them. Collected eggs are ready for your refrigerator to keep until you are ready to eat, cook, or bake with them.
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Chris, yes, sometimes it takes a little time for hens to settle in to a new environment. Also, they may have stopped laying this time of year with the short day lengths. Starting December 21, the day lengths will start getting longer, and will stimulate them to start laying once again. How old are your hens, are they still able to lay eggs. Thanks for your great comment…VintageGardenGal
Hi Chris. My wife and I are new to chickens. We’ve got a decent sized backyard (1 -1/4 acres) with a large field to one side. I’ve got a used 8×14 shed that I’m converting to a coop. Anyway, I have two primary questions:
1) Are you using the deep litter method? If so, do you have a wood floor to your shed? I’ve heard that the litter won’t compost well if you don’t have an earthen floor. I’ve also heard that you can add a bit of fresh earth or yeast to help the process.
2) Do I need to have ladders or some means for the hens to get up to the egg boxes and/or roosting area?
Like I said, we’re completely new to this, so we’re learning during the cold months with hopes of doing free-range birds in the spring.
Thanks,
Kevin
Kevin, welcome to the wonderful world of chickens. I have a wood floor in my chicken coop, and I use pine shavings as bedding. I compost my chicken manure, pine shavings, and scraps from my kitchen every day. I clean and take out my chicken manure, and put it all in a compost bin. It sounds like you are trying to compost your manure and bedding in the chicken coop. If that is the case, I do not recommend it. It is best to compost in a separate spot.
If you follow the measurements that I wrote about in my “nesting box” post, your hens should be able to get in and out of their nesting boxes without help. If you go higher, which I don’t recommend, you might need a bar or something. Generally, hens can jump/fly on to a roosting bar or into nesting boxes without aid. I do have a little plank for my hens from their coop to adjoining outside pen which is about a foot difference. They use that all day getting in and out of their coop.
I suggest you read through my “chicken” category, because I really go into detail about various aspects of caring for chickens, and what is optimum for their coop. Thanks for your comment….VintageGardenGal
Have you had any problem with snakes getting to your nesting boxes and if so, what have you done to prevent and deter this slithery pest?
JC, I have not had problems with snakes getting into my coop and pen. I make sure my coop is as buttoned-up as possible, and I have quarter inch wiring buried a foot below my soil level around my outside pen, to ward off any type of critters, including snakes. Seal or block any holes in your chicken coop floor, and if you have an outside pen, make sure it is entirely protected on sides, below ground, and top. Thanks for your question…VintageGardenGal.
Hi Bonnie,
We are so happy. Six of our seven girls are laying. It is so much fun to go to the coop and see if we have any “jewels” to collect. We are getting from 3 to 6 eggs a day. The girls do not like one of the laying boxes but they love a bushell basket we placed in the coop and three of them are laying in there. One lays under the 2nd laying box and Della our Alpha hen allows one other girl to use her box. One day we came home and found an egg at the door to the coop! It looked like one hen layed it somewhere else and they rolled it to the door so we could find it. Chickens are so wonderful and entertaining.
My question is this Bonnie, one of our Orpngtons has been pulling out her feathers on her back at the base of where her tail starts. She is not being picked on as we thought but she has done this hrself. We do not see any mites nor fleas she just seems to be itchinng herself. We put some over the counter ointment on her skin and it appears her feathers are growing back. Now Della, a Deleware, our Alpha hen is starting with the same condition. Do you have any idea what could cause this. Everyone else is OK.
Thank you for all of your advice. If it hasn’t been for you and your blog and wealth of knowledge we would not be doing as well with our girls. Thank you, thank you…..
Susan, I’m glad you are enjoying your flock! My friend had a hen that was self-pecking. I don’t know what causes that. What kind of bedding are you using? Are your hens stressed in any way? Is there a rooster in your mix by chance? Maybe call a vet that specializes in chickens. Also, research the internet. There are quite a few poultry health websites. Try Velvet Sparrow’s poultry website, http://jackshenhouse.com/ and ask. Thanks for your great question…VintageGardenGal
Bonnie, so glad I found your website!
Hope you can share your experiences and advice with me.
My plan is to dedicate an area of my shed, I am thinking, 4 x 10 for the coop area. I plan to have two entrance/exits for the chickens, one for each of the two runs that will allow me to have an alternative areas for them to range. Does that make sense or is it overkill?
-The shed does not currently have windows, should I add a window or two in the coop area for ventilation and lighting? If so, where in relationship should it be to the roost?
-I was also thinking I would frame the 4 x 10 area and use chicken wire to enclose it with an entrance for me to get inside the area for collecting the eggs and cleaning it. I thought that would allow me to check on the birds without entering the coop. Does that make sense or should I enclose it with plywood versus chicken wire?
-We live in WI. Should we do anything special during the winter months to insulate the coop?
-Do you combine all the wood shavings and manure into your normal compost pile or do you have a separate one for the chicken manure?
-I have read that the nesting boxes should be as dark as possible. I have also read some people use burlap sacks to put over the entrances. Is that necessary?
Any advice you can provide is very much appreciated!
Thank you!
Bob, your shed sounds good. Yes, chickens like windows and sunlight. I suppose it is best to place windows where they won’t be drafty on your hens. Since you are in Wisconsin, you will probably have to insulate,etc, against your winters. Check with your local feed stores on what they recommend, and what materials. I mix my pine shavings together with my chicken manure in with my compost. Nesting boxes do not necessarily have to be dark. They are more of a place for your hens to have a quiet place to be undisturbed while laying their eggs. Best of luck to you….VintageGardenGal
hiiii…i have 2 silkie females and one black bantam female and a silkie male …all are almost 10 months old …only black bantam is laying egg that shows male is fertile and mating.silkie females are not laying eggs.
what could be the reason for this.please guide me as i am keeping the hens first time….
Ahsan, hens do not need a rooster or a male to lay an egg. Hens need a rooster to created fertile eggs, and eventually chicks, if they sit on their eggs for 21 days. I’m not sure why your hens are not laying. Are you sure they are 10 months old. Are they stressed in any way? Small spacing? Too high temperature? Adequate feed and water? Most hens begin to lay at about 6 months old. Thanks for your great comment…VintageGardenGal.
no they are not stressed ..they have enough space …is it important to build a proper coop???
Ahsan, if your chickens don’t have a proper chicken coop, they are probably laying their eggs where you are not seeing them. Yes, although chickens love to free range, I think it is a good idea to have a coop for their protection, and many other reasons. It is great to let them out, but I think a coop is important in having chickens. Good luck to you…VintagegeGardenGal
What is the best nesting material to use for laying hens?
Lenora, I personally use clean pine shavings available from feed stores in a compressed bale. Straw is good, too. I compost my pine shavings everyday with my chicken manure, kitchen scraps, etc. Here is a post I wrote about “nesting boxes” from my “Chickens” category:
http://www.vintagegardengal.com/2009/03/30/backyard-chicken-coop-nesting-boxes/
Thanks for your great question…VintageGardenGal
hey Bonnie
i asked you about my hens before too……my silkies are still not breeding …is there any problem with hen ????
can you please tell me about vitamins for hens …..??
one of my friend`s rooster is infertile,i mean he gives infertile eggs ,can you tell me how to make that rooster fertile
regards…
Ahsan, sometimes hens and roosters are not perfect themselves, sometimes it is their environment. If you are providing a general balanced laying mash to your hens, they are getting all of their nutrients and essentials to lay eggs. Sometimes a rooster is not fertile. I know of no way to make a rooster fertile. A hen does not need a rooster to lay an egg, but she needs a rooster to fertilize her egg. After that, she still has to sit on her fertile egg(s) almost non-stop for 21 days to hatch a chick. Do you have a safe quiet nesting area for your hens? Thanks for your great questions…VintageGardenGal
they have a proper nesting area with a balanced diet …..
Ahsan, it could by your rooster is infertile. Have you seen your hen brood? A hen will sit on a clutch of eggs for days keeping them warm with her body temperature. If she does this successfully for 21 days, and the eggs have been fertilized by a rooster, she will hatch chicks. If you don’t see your hen sitting on a clutch of fertilized eggs brooding, you will not have chicks either. You could try incubating your fertile eggs yourself. There are small ones you can buy. Don’t really know what the missing link is for you. How are your silkies? Thanks for your great comment…VintageGardenGal
Will my chickens still lay eggs in their nesting boxes if they sleep there. I was told to block them off from the nesting boxes because they are using them to sleep in. They are not ready to lay eggs yet, still too young. Thanks for any advice you can give.
Laura, I don’t think you are going to have a problem with your hens and their nesting boxes. Let them be, and they will figure it out. Do you provide a roost for them to sleep on at night by chance? Thanks for your great question….VintageGardenGal
hii bonnie
actually what i am trying to ask is …my female is silkie is almost 10 years old ..she is still not laying eggs as you said before a hen does not need a rooster to lay eggs ……..my hen should atleast lay eggs ………
I am wondering at what age I should open the nesting boxes up for the pullets. They are 12 weeks old and I just don’t want to make a mistake and open them to early and they sleep in them and don’t lay eggs in there when the time comes. At what age do I put the fake egg in the nesting boxes also? They are used to roosting at night on the roost that we have for them.
Tonya, most hens start laying at about 6 months or 24 weeks. I don’t think you need to put a fake egg in their nesting boxes either. Hens will figure out the nesting boxes. I had my nesting boxes open and available for my hens when they were 3 months old. When the time was right they started using them. Most likely they will keep on using their roosting bar at night. Mine did. Thanks for your great questions….VintageGardenGal
I’ve had chickens for years. They would use about four nesting boxes. This new flock of mine is about three years old. This is the first time I’ve had all 13 chickens use one nest box. I just took the other boxes out of the hen house.
Brie, I think half of the fun of having chickens is their colorful personalities and behavior. Thanks for sharing…VintageGardenGal
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