19 and a half weeks old and still no eggs :( egg countdown anyone??

[Sally8]

can't wait to find out what colors you get from your EE's... it's so cool to have such a variety of shades... thanks for the compliments on the chicken dome, it's withstood 45-50 mph winds already with nary an issue, I sure do hope another 25 mph won't faze it, but I'm fully prepared to bring the whole gang inside the back room for the storm.  the carpet in there needs to be pulled up anyway, it would just get done that much faster if I have to bring them inside to poop on it... I'm way up on the hilltop, I'm safe from flooding, however, I do have springs, and the high water table  that will result means water in the basement, but the generator is on hand to run the pumps if the power goes out... this doesn't look good for the valley areas tho'.  I'll go crazy trying to stay up on all my byc reading if I'm stuck on my smart phone or the kindle...

We went on vacation to Maine this year and hubby did most of the driving so I played on his Droid. What a pain. At 55 my eyesight isn't what it used to be and I never knew my fingers were so fat! It's 11:22 pm and everything is still calm with very little rain. We never get these kind of storms unless it is a Nor'easter. Never the winds we are expected to get. We have a creek that really over flowed 10 yrs ago. I built my coop 3 ft off the ground but didn't give much thought to wind. I guess only time will tell. Will your chickens live in the dome all winter? I know there is a lot of controversy over whether how cold is too cold. We get below 0 temps here and I worry. I used a heat lamp last yr but it really didn't make much of a difference unless they we directly underneath. Still thinking on all that.

 

[cheeka]

I built my coop 3 ft off the ground but didn't give much thought to wind. I guess only time will tell. Will your chickens live in the dome all winter? I know there is a lot of controversy over whether how cold is too cold. We get below 0 temps here and I worry. I used a heat lamp last yr but it really didn't make much of a difference unless they we directly underneath. Still thinking on all that.

that's the plan, for them to live in the dome, there are 2 coops attached to the dome, on opposite corners, and the dome is covered in heavy duty vinyl to keep out rain and snow. the dome itself is tucked in the north east corner of my house, so it has absolute south and west protection, most of my wind comes from the west. it might get a little swirly in that corner, but the avg wind speed on rough days is 45-50 mph and it's been perfectly fine, with the vinyl up, it's actually very pleasant inside, still plenty of light, and significantly warmer... we get quite cold up here, lots of days below zero, worst year was 42 straight days of 30 below or colder... my gang are fluffy and fat, and should be fine, but I will watch closely for any affected body parts, combs, wattles, feet... and make amendments immediately. for now, the front of the enclosure is not covered, but I have clear plastic to install when the weather gets cold... I figured it was best to leave it open for the hurricane, easier for the air to swirl through and out than batter it over and over. and if it gets really bad, during this storm or at some point in the winter, I have 2 garages and a back room that can be converted in a pinch to accomodate the babies...

 

[SophieL]

OK - FINALLY!!! 3 out of my four girls are laying as of 29 weeks. I got my first EE blue egg this weekend. One more left to go! I'm already thinking about adding a couple more to the flock in January.

 

[blondiebee181]

This morning's egg art is.....Humpty....poor guy just didn't see that fall comin'...

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

that's the plan, for them to live in the dome, there are 2 coops attached to the dome, on opposite corners, and the dome is covered in heavy duty vinyl to keep out rain and snow.  

This chicken dome is pretty much what we did ... converted metal greenhouse frames into chicken housing. We used hardware mesh around the bottom, shade cloth over the top, and covered it in greenhouse vinyl. We also put down a couple inches of sand, and covered the floor with weed barrier, and added a thick layer of pine shavings for bedding. We also trenched around the whole thing, extended the wire mesh down into the trench, then put in perforated drainage pipe and river rock.

I think th Dome idea is a great way to repurpose something that had been swallowed by blackberry vines and forgotten for decades. I even made a mini house for the baby turkeys out of two flimsy garden archs, wire mesh, and a couple 2x2 wooden stakes. Even though it is bigger than many chicken coops, it didn't last long though because those turkeys grow so fast and we've had to expand it mightily, but we are planning to convert it into a bantam house after Thanksgiving.

 

[PiecesofAmber]

Hurricane Sandy is hitting us right now, but the chickens don't care....we got more eggs today!

 

[HalfAChanceFarm]

They usually don't just lay eggs unless they have appropriate condition and nutrition to lay. It takes a lot out of them,
Make sure...
1.) they have a laying formula
2.)enough lighting throughout the day
3.) good enough heat temperature
4.) have nest boxes
5.) are not picking at eachother

Some chickens don't begin laying until 30 weeks, so give them some time too.

Hope that helps,
half A Chance Farm

 

[fuquay nc girl]

Woozers!

I wonder if my BA's will be laying duck sized eggs as well. How old is Rascal?

We have a Rascal as well but she is a cat and I don't expect any eggs from her

Bruce

Bruce,
My Rascal is 31 weeks old now. I can tell you it was quite a surprise to find an egg that size in the box considering the size of her other eggs. She's a good layer, laying an egg almost everyday. My other two are 27 weeks old and still no eggs.

 

[LoveChickens123]

they start laying @ 21-25 weeks old

 

[Shannin]

My girls are 21 weeks old today and none have started laying just yet. Should I switch them over to laying feed or wait until they start laying to switch them over?