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ALMOST BEEKEEPING - RELATED TOPICS => FARMING & COUNTRY LIFE => Topic started by: GSF on April 25, 2014, 06:40:53 am

Title: Chicken poop in nest boxes - solved?
Post by: GSF on April 25, 2014, 06:40:53 am
My chicken house is pretty big - considering. It's about 8'x8' and 7 or 8ft tall with a slope. My nest boxes are built on the sides to be accessible from outside the chicken house. You simply lift the lid exposing 3 nests at a time. (12 nests).

For reasons unknown to me, my chickens poop like crazy in the nest at night. They have a roost from the ground to the top slanted as you enter the house. I have a strap so I can raise and secure the roost when I clean it out. In an attempt to solve this problem I added another roost per say in front of the nests. Worked some.

So the other night as I was securing the pen(maximum security chicken prison) I started to let the nest lids down, then the thought occurred "if I leave them up maybe they won't roost in the nest". It worked. I guess they don't like being exposed to the outside when they sleep. This is day three without any early morning chicken poop in the nest.
Title: Re: Chicken poop in nest boxes - solved?
Post by: Intheswamp on April 25, 2014, 10:13:41 am
<chuckle>  I hear you on the "maximum security chicken prison" part.  Is your coop where it can be locked down completely, also?...a prison within a prison?  I had to put off getting chickens several years ago due to inheriting two of my mother's dogs.  One recently died, so I'm entertaining the thought again.  I'm looking at Woods' "Fresh-Air" coops/houses.  Woods' concepts appear sound, down in my area we have no great problem with extreme cold but rather heat and humidity issues.

I'm glad to hear you worked it out, the ladies don't like a draft on their posteriors, eh?  :laugh:

Ed
Title: Re: Chicken poop in nest boxes - solved?
Post by: BeeMaster2 on April 25, 2014, 12:44:10 pm
My chicken house is pretty big - considering. It's about 8'x8' and 7 or 8ft tall with a slope. My nest boxes are built on the sides to be accessible from outside the chicken house. You simply lift the lid exposing 3 nests at a time. (12 nests).

For reasons unknown to me, my chickens poop like crazy in the nest at night. They have a roost from the ground to the top slanted as you enter the house. I have a strap so I can raise and secure the roost when I clean it out. In an attempt to solve this problem I added another roost per say in front of the nests. Worked some.

So the other night as I was securing the pen(maximum security chicken prison) I started to let the nest lids down, then the thought occurred "if I leave them up maybe they won't roost in the nest". It worked. I guess they don't like being exposed to the outside when they sleep. This is day three without any early morning chicken poop in the nest.

It sounds likebut i rather doubt it but does this leave an access for predator's to get in. Don't quite understand your design.
Jim
Title: Re: Chicken poop in nest boxes - solved?
Post by: Intheswamp on April 25, 2014, 02:29:26 pm
I think there is a strong fence around the perimeter, thus the "maximum security" statement.  At least that's the way I took it but was the reason I inquired about the coop itself being where it could be locked down completely if needed...a double barrier.

Ed
Title: Re: Chicken poop in nest boxes - solved?
Post by: GSF on April 25, 2014, 10:38:37 pm
The inmates can be housed under double lockdown (lol) It's pretty tight. I have the yard 25'x30' or so completely enclosed top and bottom with chicken wire. Around the exterior of the chicken yard fence I also have dog pen wire incorporated with the chicken wire. The dog wire also comes down to the ground and goes out about 3 or 4' on top of the ground covered with leaves. (prevents digging under)

The coop itself has locks on everything that can be opened. In addition it also has some one inch mesh galvanized wire nailed to it at the bottom and also runs along the top of the ground for about 3 feet. Each entrance has wire running under the doors so nothing can dig under the doors. Each door/entrance has two locks - latches, at the top and bottom.

We also let them free range down in the woods for about a half day each day. The back entrance lets out in the goat pen (14 acres +/-) We have chicken wire running the front side of the goat pen now so they are less inclined to come through the fence and tear the yard up, among other things.
Title: Re: Chicken poop in nest boxes - solved?
Post by: itsme on April 28, 2014, 12:44:57 pm
The only time I have trouble with poop in our nest boxes is when the girls want to spend the night roosting there.  The only time they want to do that is when I introduce some new girls to the old ones.  The new ones will try to get up high to sleep and also away from the "mean" hens that are claiming the best roosting places. 

Depending on how many girls are setting/laying, and thus the availability of open boxes for others to lay fresh eggs, I will close off the highest of the nest boxes (which are the ones that are most attractive for alternate sleeping) until I can get them all sleeping on the roost at night.  By closing them off I mean I cut a board to fit across the row and fixed it so I can easily install or remove it as needed.