Nest Box Nightmare!

[Chriscrystals]

I've recently introduced some new 20 week old hybrid chooks but am having a devil of a time keeping some of them from roosting in and soiling the existing nest boxes which are at regulation low level etc. There is plenty of perching, straw bales, litter, etc and the house is cleaned out every day - its a veritable poultry paradise. I'm having to keep the boxes covered and heavily protected overnight (think Stalag 19) to stop them getting in but am still having to go out after dark to move them on. Am currently rushing out early to open up so that the oldies can get laying, but the newbies are still soiling during the day - I don't think its in preparation for laying either, as only a couple of them look like they might do soon. They have a covered run and free ranging over about half an acre during the day; there has been hardly any aggression from the oldies (indeed a couple of newbies are already roosting wth them) so I can't for the life of me work out why the others are so determined to roost in that corner, other than its diagonally opposite the oldies roost! Any ideas?

[Diane]

They do it, because they can

I have the same problem and have now given up............I just take out the soiled nestbox bedding first thing. Some chooks like to roost and some like to snuggle.

[richard p]

ive found wiping any dirty eggs with a damp sponge is easier than trying to keep the nest boxes clean all the time

[Chriscrystals]

Thanks for both replies - however, shall persevere with the 'training' for now and see if I can encourage more sociable behaviour! (although not entirely sure who is training who...)!

[Chantal]

One of mine insists on sleeping in the next box too, nothing I can do will persuade her to perch. If you succeed, please do let us know what you did

[Chriscrystals]

Will keep you posted! So far, overnight protection seems to be working (large upright flowerpost which fill the nest boxes), and daytime soiling reduced a bit too. None currently use perching, all preferring the straw bales with shavings on. This includes an upended one which gets 4 birds in the space of an A4 sheet of paper - you can see where battery farmers got the idea from.....!

[richard p]

would you sit on a stick all night with the wind whistling round your lower regions , when you could huddle together with some warm bodiies on a straw bale?..... i dont think they will choose to perch on perches when theyve got used to the alternatives.... does it matter if they are happy healthy chickens?. perhaps you will have to wait for warm summer nights

[Suechooks]

2 of my ex-batts sleep in nest boxes occasionally. I also have a tyre in the hut so that the lower ranking chooks can roost as the ones at the top of the pecking order try to knock some of the others off the perches. I also have 1 or 2 who sleep on top of the nest boxes. I think when I have another chook house I'd have the perches at different levels to allow for pecking order.

[Chriscrystals]

Latest update: after about a month of perseverance, the chooks appear to have given up attempting to roost in the nest boxes or soil them during the day - certainly for the last couple of weeks, anyway. This could be simply because its been so cold they've all been roosting together in a heap, so it may only be a temporary victory as the weather warms up....!