Forbidding harvest of eggs from Nest Boxes

[Onigato]

Pretty much as the title suggests, I'm trying to forbid the eggs in the nest box itself, but I don't see the actual eggs in the box.

Setup, multiple nest boxes laid out in a large pasture area (fort is only a few IRL hours old, I haven't even gotten proper bedrooms yet!), and several female egg-laying birds (turkeys, ducks, chickens). I'll watch a "hen" claim a box, pause the game, and in the box itself will be just the material the box is made of, a "claimed by [hen]" notice, but no eggs. Unpause, and a few seconds later a dorf will show up to claim the eggs that I can't see and haul them off to storage and eventual processing.

I need *some* of these eggs for eating, no easy subterranean farming and setting up surface crops is taking more steps than I've had time to set up yet, but I want to keep a box or so from each type of "hen" every season for eventual meat and bone production. As such I can't just change my stockpiles to not accept eggs, and while eventually I'll be sticking the hens in a more easily closed off location, that day is not today.

Any suggestions? The main wiki hasn't updated yet to the Steam Release, but given it's been less than 48 hours since official release, that's to be expected for a little bit yet. :)

[vonsch]

I'm not sure I have it figured in this version yet. Noticed same thing about not being able to see contents of nest box easily. You can go into the "stock" listing on each batch of eggs, then use the zoom to location to see if they are in a nest box.
Other than that, try forbidding the nest box. That SHOULD keep the dwarves from raiding it, but haven't verified it's working as advertised. Trying to figure out too many other things at the same time. Making slow progress. :p

[Harbot]

You can permanently (forbidden) close the door until you have enough poultry. This is the way I mostly did this pre-Steam releases. :D

[Onigato]

@Harbot, yeah, that'll be the long term goal. Currently the nests are in a mega-pasture, open to the sky and on one side. Soon, soon! (TM) :)

I'll check out the stock listings this evening, that might work out a touch better for the moment. I've tried forbidding the boxes entire, but either my hens aren't using them any more either or the eggs are still being stolen, I'm not sure which, but the hens certainly aren't sitting on the eggs for more than a day or so.

[vonsch]

Guess I should lock the door to my dog & turkey room if forbidding the nest boxes doesn't do it. Been too busy elsewhere to recheck on the eggs. But nothing has hatched, though it has only been a season or two. So much to build...

[Ghiron]

You have to lock them behind a door. Dwarves love picking up eggs almost as much as they love picking up seeds.

[NinjaFarts]

In the previous release when the hen/turkey/bird had laid and you checked the nest box (you might need to change the tab from the bird itself) you can find the eggs and then forbid them. However there is no indication of whether or not they are fertilized eggs.

[Pickle Rick]

lol cannot find the nest boxes...what are they under. I built them but cannot for the life of me figure out how to build/place them...cant find under workshop tab area...prob missing something simple..but i am simple lol.

[Pickle Rick]

Originally posted by Pickle Rick:

lol cannot find the nest boxes...what are they under. I built them but cannot for the life of me figure out how to build/place them...cant find under workshop tab area...prob missing something simple..but i am simple lol.

So, long story short, found it lol.

[Onigato]

Okay, so I figured it out, eventually. For some reason even if a hen isn't actively sitting on eggs the nest box will remain *Claimed by [hen name]*, so when she walks over it again after the dwarves have already harvested the eggs, it LOOKS like the eggs aren't there. Because they aren't, they got harvested DAYS prior.

Forbidding the entire nest box prevents any birds from using it, but sitting, waiting, monitoring until a bird actually wants to lay eggs and sit on them, you do actually see the eggs. Gotta be quick forbidding the eggs themselves, because dwarves REALLY love eggs, seems to be one of the most hi-pri jobs in the hardcoded blocks.

But I got it done, and now I'm waiting for two clutches each of chicks and poults to grow up. Their respective fathers have already gone into the... well, it's not a stew pot, but I only use rock pots for food storage so that the thrice damned vermin don't get into my barrels, so it is *A* pot at least. Omnomnom, chicken and egg Fine Meal with a Dwarven Wine!

[Arcanua]

On the lower right you'll see a box with a lock, trashcan and some other icons. If you hit that you can mass forbid the area your eggs are in. Else lock the room they're in.

[LaChouette]

Originally posted by SneakyGunz:

So, long story short, found it lol.

I'm having trouble placing them too. Will you share

I believe it's in construction -> workshops -> farming

[SneakyGunz]

Originally posted by LaChouette:

Originally posted by SneakyGunz:

I'm having trouble placing them too. Will you share

I believe it's in construction -> workshops -> farming

Thank you.

[Xcorps]

Just FYI, be careful about how many eggs you let grow into new birds. You don't want to get into a situation where you are producing birds faster than you are butchering them. New birds aren't (or didn't used to be, correct me if I am wrong) pastured so you will have chicks everywhere.

You might think about building a room just for the nest boxes and breeding hens, with a door, a corrider, and another door, like an airlock. The pasturage zone covers the next boxes only. Then in adjacent room that has it's own access to the butchery, you put the birds for butchery as needed.

I've never had any luck with outdoor pasturage and birds, maybe others have. It can be especially crippling in fun zones.

[Robert]

I recommend autonestbox for such things.