What breeds are the best winter laying chickens?

Farmerwife1 said:

Since Chickens only have so many eggs they can lay in their life (each chicken has a certain amount of undeveloped eggs in their bodies), I want to prolong their egg laying life,

Click to expand...

They are born with waaaayyy more eggs than they will ever lay, lighting or not.
But lighting, with no rest ever to molt, can possibly make them unhealthy enough to stop laying at a younger age.

I have read too many things and talked with actual chicken producing farmers and decided my decision not to wear my chickens out with too much light is the right one. People do talk about their chickens get to a certain age and stop laying. The ones that have been tricked into laying all year round, stop sooner.

I fixed the problem of not getting eggs in the winter by purchasing winter laying chicks this year. I have only one Brahma right now and she has been giving me 4-5 brown eggs a week. I read she will lay into May and take a rest when the rest of my hens start laying My one Golden Laced Wyandotte just started laying last week and gave me 4 pale pink eggs. The winter chicks that will arrive in the mail the end of March are: Silver laced Wyandotte (3)(Brown), Speckled Sussex (3)(Light brown), Golden Pride (3)(Cream-white), Dominant Copper (Chocolate)(5) Hopefully all my chicks will survive the first two weeks this year. I have a total of 25 chicks arriving. I have a few blue egg layers and 3 easter eggers also. I have 10 other chickens (they are my new hobby, I started last year). I am raising them for their different egg colors.

Last year I started with 19 chicks. I lost 6 in the first week. 1 got out of the pen and my dog killed it. The last two were roosters and I don't want roosters (I just don't want to crack an egg and find blood in it). So, I gave them away. This year my sister-in-law told me, she would teach me how to butcher them. They were so pretty, I really did not want to eat them.

So, if I am lucky and none of them arrive as cockerels (3 of the kinds I ordered are sexable at hatching) and they all survive (I have improved my brooder system), I will have 35 hens and plenty of eggs to give as hostess gifts to friends and family!

My buff Orpington laid eggs almost the whole winter and her eggs are larger than normal. Also she’s super sweet

I have heard Orpington's are very nice. I did not know they also lay in the winter!

Farmerwife1 said:

I fixed the problem of not getting eggs in the winter by purchasing winter laying chicks this year. I have only one Brahma right now and she has been giving me 4-5 brown eggs a week. I read she will lay into May and take a rest when the rest of my hens start laying

Click to expand...

Yes, many pullets will often lay thru their first winter without lights, she probably won't take a break to molt until next fall when the days shorten. The brahmas I've had were sweet birds but rather lousy layers(3-4/wk) after first year who ate a LOT!

Farmerwife1 said:

talked with actual chicken producing farmers and decided my decision not to wear my chickens out with too much light is the right one.

Click to expand...

Most actual 'chicken farmers' cull their layers by their second or third fall.

Farmerwife1 said:

The last two were roosters and I don't want roosters (I just don't want to crack an egg and find blood in it).

Click to expand...

So many myths! Blood in egg has nothing to do with cock/erels. A fertile egg does not have blood in it. Blood spots in eggs happen when a tiny blood vessel breaks as ova is released from ovary follicle. I believe it is explained in this excellent video:

I have seen eggs years ago with developing chicks in them and that is just not what I want. My chicken are my hobby and I don't care if my Brahma only lays 4-5 eggs a week. I have many other chickens that will take up the slack. I don't want to sell my eggs. I am enjoying giving my eggs to my family and friends. It makes them very happy to receive them and they enjoy the different colors. When my birds first started laying last summer, my husband asked me when we could start eating them. I enjoyed just gazing at them and he had to remind me we now have an egg factory! I don't have any flighty birds and I find they are very relaxing to be around!