The Christmas Egg Mystery- Your help needed!

UnderHisWings

Chirping
7 Years
Apr 16, 2012
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Oregon!
At the beginning of December, one of my two Easter-Eggers, Gertie, laid her first (green) egg! For a while, she was the only one in our little flock to lay. On Christmas day, we secretly hoped that another pullet would start laying. So, around lunch time, we checked on the chickens. No egg. That night, however, there were two green eggs! So, we excitedly assumed that our other Easter-egger, Lady, must be laying. But, since then, we have not had two eggs in one day again. We've even had days without any egg. I've only ever seen Gertie in the nesting box, but that could just be coincidence. However, I've recently noticed about every-other day the egg has tiny speckles in it, while the others do not. Now, reader, please gather all of your detective skills, and with the information I have given you, help me solve this mystery!
 
Are your chickens free range by any chance? I've heard that some chickens who free range will get confused when they first start laying and can lay around your yard. I'm kinda new this chicken thing so if I'm wrong, don't get mad at me...
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. I've also heard that when some chickens start laying, they don't lay consistently. It takes a few months for their pattern to be regular when laying.

Also, my chicken lays speckled eggs sometimes, and sometimes she doesn't. I know for sure they're her eggs because I only have her. I know, I need another chicken.
 
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Are your chickens free range by any chance? I've heard that some chickens who free range will get confused when they first start laying and can lay around your yard. I'm kinda new this chicken thing so if I'm wrong, don't get mad at me...
hu.gif
. I've also heard that when some chickens start laying, they don't lay consistently. It takes a few months for their pattern to be regular when laying.

Also, my chicken lays speckled eggs sometimes, and sometimes she doesn't. I know for sure they're her eggs because I only have her. I know, I need another chicken.
No, they have a run, but we only free range them occasionally, so I don't think that's the case. And yes, I know that some chickens do have irregular laying at first. I've even heard of chickens laying their first egg and never laying again, though I hope that's not the case here... Hmm...then the speckles probably don't have anything to do with it....Thanks for the help! Hope you can get some more chickens soon! :D
 
Do you have them on layer feed? That has the calcium needed to make eggs uniform and the vitamins to keep hens productive year round. It could also possibly be the weather making them lay irregularly.
 
myfinefeatheredfriends, to answer your first question, yes. We do have our chickens on layer feed, and are getting very beautiful and excellent eggs pretty much every day! And to your second question (or suggestion), no we don't have a light, though I'm certain it would be helpful. But does lack of light affect different chickens so differently? Or could it have been that they were laying infrequently, both of them, and they finally both laid an egg on the same day on Christmas day? I'm still so confused about this "mystery".... And why is it that Gertie is the only one I've seen in the nesting box? And squatting? And croaking like she's going to lay an egg????
 
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No, they have a run, but we only free range them occasionally, so I don't think that's the case. And yes, I know that some chickens do have irregular laying at first. I've even heard of chickens laying their first egg and never laying again, though I hope that's not the case here... Hmm...then the speckles probably don't have anything to do with it....Thanks for the help!  Hope you can get some more chickens soon! :D


Well I'm glad I helped with the speckle thing. I don't know much about chickens... still learnin here!
I'm hopefully getting a BR hen in the Spring!
 
Well, although perhaps not everything makes sense- the problem is over! Lady now lays quite regularly! (As does another pullet, Princess!) We think that Lady must have just been a very slow layer until recently. Mystery Solved!
 
Sounds like it's all sorted out now. I was going to mention that my Easter Egger has laid two eggs in one day twice now. The first time was her first two eggs, then again very recently. It's like she holds one in from the day before...then lays that one early morning and the second one near the end of the day.
 

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