Eggs layed whilst on perch

[walter]

Good afternoon

I have seven new hybrid hens. I've had them a couple of months now and they've all been laying for about a month. When they first started laying they all conveniently layed their eggs in the nest boxes. Now three of them have decided that they would rather do it each day on the perch. Consequently I'm ending up with three cracked eggs a day, as they all land on the droppings board.

They have three nest boxes available to them .

It appears that they are laying the eggs whilst it's still dark in the morning..... I inspected them at 5.45am the other morning (whilst it was still dark) and they were still all on the perch, and the eggs were already there on the droppings board (cracked).

Any suggestions please on how to combat this

Thank you.

 

[Marigold]

That's quite a 'first' - people usually have problems with hens sleeping in the boxes and then laying eggs in there, which get dirty from the overnight droppings!
I can only suggest that you could maybe try adding a thicker layer of soft bedding on the coop floor, to catch the eggs when they drop? Or even, if they always drop in the same place, reduce the impact by adding a box underneath, again with soft lining in it, but a bit higher than the floor?
The hens may grow out of this annoying habit, do let us know how they get on.

 

[walter]

Thanks Marigold

I did think about that option, but it won't be so easy to scrape the droppings board each day !!!

The perch area is very dark in their shed. The other thought I had was to put a timed light on near their perch, so that it came on about an hour before daybreak and see what happens then. Maybe then they would be inclined to get away from the light and go to a dark nest box. What do you think about that ?

 

[chrismahon]

Welcome to the forum Walter. The eggs may be being dropped because of a visiting predator, noise or fighting in the coop before they are let out. We have one with hormonal problems who drops eggs off the perch. We have lowered the perch to 6" and put a layer of newspaper over the wood shavings. That cushions the impact but unfortunately sometimes the eggs drop in poo, even though the coop is cleaned every day. Putting an early light on may frighten them all into dropping their eggs?

 

[walter]

Thanks for the reply... I don't think it's a visiting predator.... I think it's just habit... all the birds are laying well at the moment, probably one a day.. and it's always three eggs out of seven, normally in the same perch position.

OK about the light.... I didn't really want to go down that route unless I had to.

I'm thinking of putting a foam layer on the droppings board covered in heavy duty building plastic sheet.. the sort they use for damp coarse membranes... that way I should still be able to scrape the poo off.

 

[Marigold]

If they're always in the same perch position, at least you could go down after dark and have a look at which ones are roosting there, so you find out the culprits. Not sure this would help, but it might give you some more ideas,

 

[walter]

I did think of this... maybe put some of those plastic leg rings on the culprits.... (the hens all look the same to me !!!!)... then find an 'annex' for them and try and break their habit somehow.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

 

[chrismahon]

We use plastic leg rings to identify problem birds quite a lot Walter. You may find these are lowest in the pecking order and are getting bullied on the perch by the hens either side. Dropping eggs can be a reflex action presumably to reduce their weight and give them better flight capability. Can you fit another perch in the coop?

 

[walter]

Hi Chris

Sorry that I haven't replied but my computer went away to be fixed and then I got involved in other things. I did have an additional two perches in their house but I took them away as they weren't getting used.Their house is a 6' x 3' shed which now currently has two 3 feet long perches running across it's width. I only have seven birds and they seem to want to perch all close together.
I haven't solved the problem as such, as six out of the seven are still laying on the perch and one uses one of the three nest boxes available to them. However I've accepted that I'm not going to conquer this problem and have adapted the droppings board underneath the perches. I bought some 2" to 3" thick foam and laid it on the droppings board, covered with thick builders DPM plastic sheeting.
Works well !... I have to brush some of the eggs down to get poo off... but I'm not getting any breakages at the moment (perhaps I will when the eggs get thinner shelled).

Thanks.... Walter.