This Figures

When my brother-in-law ordered supplies for their new coop, I noticed there were 16 brood boxes on the list for 15 chickens and I suggested from (limited) experience that perhaps 16 was too many.

Yesterday, Ginger proved me right. Apparently, only one will do for some chickens. Witness:



There are 3 boxes there to lay an egg in and the one Ginger wants is occupied at this moment. And this makes her very unhappy. And she lets everyone know of her displeasure.

I was out in the runs all day, resting (started feeling what I can describe as light-headedness. a vague sense of something is not normal.....take it easy) and keeping a motherhen eye out for the chickies and I hear this squawking. It continued so I wandered into the coop to find Ginger up in front of the boxes just giving Frack whatfor for being in HER box. Her special box. The ONLIEST box which will suffice to lay an egg in. And the world was going to end unless she got off of her space and let Ginger have it. Even the rooster was watching this nonsense..... Frack, or is that Frick?, of course would not concede and you have to wonder how easy it is to lay an egg when you're getting yelled at and have this chicken rump in your face.

After the noise died down, I looked in again and found this:



So I thought, at last, peace in the coop.

In any case, when I checked later for eggs, all three were in that same nestbox so Ginger waited for the right one. I think she was faking out the other one to get her to finish up. Chickens!