Where are my eggs???

[mommafarr]

Sometimes adding red pepper powder to their feed will help warm their systems and they will keep laying eggs. The cold will definitely slow or stop egg production, but the pepper idea usually works, also you can put a light in the chicken coop for a little added warmth. Use the same one you had when they were chicks, if you used a light.

 

[chickado]

Our egg laying hasn't slowed except when we laid off the laying mash. But, then again we still have a lot of days over 70.

 

[jhc]

Make sure you have an alternate light source. They need extra light during the winter moths. Our hens are laying without skipping a beat and it's pretty cold up here in the NE. All our chickens are young so that helps as well. Our older ones didn't do as well during the winter months.

 

[leasmom]

They have three lights of varying colors, none directly on them...one is red over there water, and the other two are above them, a green and a white one, again not directly on them...and they've been in this pen indoors since the beginning of December and they were laying at first until 4 days ago...and I turn off the light at night...does the red pepper really work? I have some but I thought they didn't respond to hot spices???

 

[dancingbear]

Did you just get them in December, or did you start keeping them indoors in December? What part of the country are you in?

Mine free-range all year round, regardless of the weather. They slow way down when molting, but the rest of the time they lay like gangbusters, unless they're brooding and raising chicks. Mine recently finished molting, and now I'm getting lots of eggs.

I make sure they get more protein in the winter, because they don't have all the bugs and little critters they catch in warm weather. Black oil sunflower seeds help, too.

 

[briteday]

It's down in the teens here most nights. Days are in the 30-40's. We're at 5500' elevation, have had snow on the ground for most of the last month. Our coop has no extra light or heat, not insulated...6 RIR's from the feed store, cheap little things! And I get an average of 5 eggs per day...some days 4, and some days 7! So far no slow down.

And I'm such a newbie. I really have not much of a clue about most of this stuff. As a biochemist I'm just trying now to figure out the pros and cons of various feeds. The ranchers all tell me to forget the feed, just throw them table scraps and horse grain. However, my egg production has been putting plenty of money into my daughter's college fund lately (egg sales cover way more than the feed bill every month) so I'm trying to figure out the best way to keep the eggs going. So far I guess it's beginner's luck!

 

[Akane]

When adding light it should be bright enough you can comfortably read a newspaper at the level the animals are. White light is best and daylight spectrum bulbs are even better. Red light and selective light spectrums won't do as much. People use red and blue lights at night or to calm animals down because they don't trigger the brain to think it's daylight and let the animal (or person) sleep. I'm not sure what green light would do but while we see green and yellow light best it's not usually the most useful light for health and growth of plants or animals.

 

[leasmom]

I got an egg today but I think they are suffering from mites or something that is buzzing around them, which is strange since they are indoors but they do have some straw that was given to us...I put down lime and limed them but it doesn't seem to be working...can mites come from the straw? They've been indoors for over a month now and you can see them trying to bite at something buzzing around their heads and rear feathers...

Answer to question: no I just put them indoors in December.

 

[mzrea]

It's down in the teens here most nights. Days are in the 30-40's. We're at 5500' elevation, have had snow on the ground for most of the last month. Our coop has no extra light or heat, not insulated...6 RIR's from the feed store, cheap little things! And I get an average of 5 eggs per day...some days 4, and some days 7! So far no slow down.

7 eggs from 6 RIRs? I just argued with my DS that they only lay an egg a day, he swears they can lay two a day... now I am confused..I was worried that we were wasting the money we are spending on college! Is it so? Can the girls do double duty?​

 

[dancingbear]

Quote:
I didn't know lime was used to control mites. I use food grade DE, or if it's really bad, ivermectin, the 1% injectable, in their water. 4cc (or ml, same thing) per gallon.

Mites don't fly, though, so it sound like you have something else. Yes, insects can come in on hay. Flying insects wouldn't be an infestation on the birds. Just near the birds. I'd try to get hold of one of the insects to find out what it is, and see if it's something you need to get rid of, or if it's just a bug the girls will chase around, catch and eat when they can. I have a little banty hen that used to sway back and forth, staring straight up, watching for mosquitoes. When she saw one, she'd leap up and catch it. All the chicks she raised learned to do that, too.

Why did you put them indoors? Are you in an extremely cold area? Like sub-zero a lot? Many people keep chickens in extremely cold places, with just enough heat at night to avoid frostbite.

Is this your first year to keep chickens? I don't have any idea what your warm weather arrangements are, or how much space you have, or what your climate's like, but moving them totally indoors just seems really odd to me.

ETA:I meant to say had a little banty hen, that was a long time ago!