Recent content by sunnysideohio

  1. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    Dog theif!?! Oh no!!! I think they'd be food for the chickens if they tried. Have not seen any vermin ever in the chicken yard. I've got 2 roosters who I don't think would stand for it, and their run is covered and fenced. Maybe I should invest in a good camera system!
  2. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    Thank you. They are fenced in, and though there are lots of places for them to lay, I can't imagine I've missed since I've looked so completely. But, far bet it from me to claim that I can't be outsmarted by a chicken!! =)
  3. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    Thanks for the reply. Just looked at a February egg basket or three that had 12, 13, and 15 eggs. That was before we even had the 11 new hens that are about 25-30 weeks old now. Maybe my expectations are just too high, but I was truly expecting 20 eggs per day.
  4. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    Breeds: 2 Light Brahmas 3 Olive Eggers 2 Rhode Island Reds 3 Barred Rock 1 Wellsummer 3 Easter Eggers 2 Black Sex Links 1 Amber Link Rest are barnyard mix
  5. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    Diet Diet is the NatureWise All Flock plus garden scraps, a bit of scratch grains here and there, also whatever they find roaming in the chicken yard. They don't quite free range, but have a yard 200 feet on the perimeter / circumference. Access to plenty of grit and oyster shell by the...
  6. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    This is on the heels of my earlier frustration in the summer, documented in this thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/extremely-low-production.1671528/
  7. sunnysideohio

    Frustrated with Production for Months

    Ok, I'm sorry, but I am frustrated. To sum it up, we have 30 laying hens, and what should be the best production time of year we're averaging about 1 dozen per day. Before my 11 new hens were of laying age (new in spring, laying by August), I had days of 14, 15, 16, 18 eggs. And that was...
  8. sunnysideohio

    Extremely Low Production

    We have not seen anything like this before. 18 laying hens. 3 of those are broody, 2 of the broody are completely isolated to their own small coop. In addition to the 18, 11 new hens, just starting to lay their first eggs in the last 2 weeks. We are getting fewer than 10 eggs per day on...
  9. sunnysideohio

    New Chickens - How Long Before I Let Them Mingle with the Flock?

    Thanks, there was some fussing, but birds gonna bird as i always say, haha! They were enough used to each other that it was a very smooth transition from “no touch” to “touch” this afternoon. The really interesting part was when some of the adults noticed that the “kid coop” was open!! They love...
  10. sunnysideohio

    New Chickens - How Long Before I Let Them Mingle with the Flock?

    thanks, love your perspective on this. Probably waited longer than necessary but finally let them mingle this afternoon, after reading your reply and the other replies! It actually went quite well, some expected pecking and shushing included, and we had a very good time watching them all get to...
  11. sunnysideohio

    New Chickens - How Long Before I Let Them Mingle with the Flock?

    Thanks so much for the reply. After reading yours and the others, we let them out today to mingle for a few hours and it went extremely well!
  12. sunnysideohio

    New Chickens - How Long Before I Let Them Mingle with the Flock?

    We have a flock of 23 adult birds, 2 of which are roosters. It is a barnyard mix that has grown a bit each year, with that growth being from the flock itself. We have allowed 2 hens each year to hatch a small brood while remaining with the flock, raising them with minimal interference from us...
  13. sunnysideohio

    Lethargic Chick - Listing to One Side and Lying Down

    Thanks for your reply. She did not make it through the day. ☹️ We've learned that losing birds is a normal part of caring for chickens, but it's never easy.
  14. sunnysideohio

    Lethargic Chick - Listing to One Side and Lying Down

    We have 12 one-week-old pullet chicks of mixed breeds we are raising indoors here in northeast Ohio. Using an XL dog crate with brooder plate to raise them. Plenty of food and water, and we check and clean pasty butts as needed. Getting along quite well for the most part. All but one seem...
  15. sunnysideohio

    Hens with Broken Back Feathers and Bare Above Tail

    Thanks so much for the reply! We now have 1 roo to 17 hens, though we previously had 2 roosters for the same 17 hens. Planning to keep just the one rooster, as we do want to have chicks now and again. The current rooster is just 1 year old, hatched this time last year. Is it likely they will...
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