Recent content by fmk

Some of my hens are sleeping in & soiling their nest box at night. The others roost on the roosting bars in the coop. They have plenty of room - any suggestions?

Three of my four hens stopped laying after a dog attack about 10 weeks ago. The three who are not laying didn't appear to suffer any physical injuries - strangely the one who was badly bitten by the dog, has recovered and is laying an egg each day. Is there anything I can do to encourage the...

I've a similar problem - down from 4 eggs to one per day from my 4 hens. I noticed two of them actually 'building' a nest in some long grass recently - could they be planning to lay outside for a change?

Hi - I lost one of my hens to a dog attack recently. I've moved the remaining 4 to a bigger, more secure run. However we are now down to an egg a day - Blanket, who was badly injured by the dog, is strangly, the only one laying! I noticed recently that two of the hens appear to be building a...

Hi All - sad news - just lost one of my five hens (Betty - picture above) today after a dog (or fox?) attack. Blanket has a nasty bite on her back also - I hope she'll be ok. The other three are badly shaken but appear to be ok. Lots of treats and tender loving care for the next few weeks! I'll...

I have my hens for over a year now & they have been laying very well. Last week, on the morning my grandchild (Isobel) was being baptised the hens layed her a present of a tiny egg - see link. How did they know what was going on? This morning they produced this pointed egg - what does it...

Thanks for the encouragement - however, I had two broken eggs as a result of the rust. It's only the 16th March - just imagine how crazy my Irish hens will be tomorrow on St. Patrick's Day!!

Hi All - I've got 5 great hens. They have two identical nest boxes, along side each other, but they will only use one of them. This morning there were three hens in one box and the other two were trying to join them too! Is this normal - how can I encourage them to use both boxes? Frank

Hi All, I was worried that my hens were looking 'worst for wear' until I saw some of the photos here! How long does molting normally last (mine have been losing feathers for months now)? Is it normal to loose a lot of neck feathers too ( I suspected they might be pecking each other but I haven't...

I noticed that one of my 5 chickens was out of sorts & didn't want to leave the coop today. On inspection her vent area is quite 'raw' with missing feathers, some whitish scores and black 'spots' around the swollen vent. Is she suffering from gleet or thrush? If so how can it be cured? Worried Frank

My hens have been laying for the past 5 weeks. It's just great having the constant supply of fresh eggs. One problem I've discovered is when we 'hard boil' the eggs - it's next to impossible to remove the shells - it's as if they have been applied with super glue. Any solutions? Are the eggs...

My five hens are about 25 weeks old and have been laying for the past 5 weeks. From the start they have used both laying box to lay their 4 or 5 eggs per day. Today I found an egg outside the coop - on the grass of the chicken run. Is this normal or something I should worry about? Thanks in...

My 5 have just started to lay - using the two laying boxes. Today the first egg arrived at 08.00 and the 5th at about 16.00

The middle egg is a Titleist - the other two are from hybrids

Three eggs from one bird in 24 hours - so much for my theory that getting 5 eggs from 5 birds tells me that they are all laying. Is it common for a bird to lay more than one egg a day? Any easy way to know who is laying and who isn't?