2 eggs... then nothing.... heat? and ...is this normal?

[AmyLM]

UPDATE: *see last page please*

Well it finally happened! Two bantams finally laid eggs! Oh gosh the eggs are SO cute. They are SO tiny and perfect I couldn't believe it. I went out to close their coop door and glanced in the box and was like.. is that... NO WAY!! The eggs are probably from my buff black tailed Japanese and my white bantam but I cant say they aren't from my other littler birds like my Phoenix but I'm a little suspicious they are from my bantams due to the teeny size. My chicks hatched on February 12th and laid two eggs on June 24th making them .. what ... 22 weeks and 2 days I think? (is that right?) I'm still waiting on the other 36 birds though lol

I will post the pics I took of them tomarrow when hubby can help me transfer from my phone


Ok... I know.. I know... the time they start laying varies by breed. And with around 36 hens of 30 different breeds some will start laying early and some will lay late. BUT some of the breeds I have start early... but I'm now sitting right at 29 weeks.. and not a single egg from anyone. One breed I was told starts as early as 19 weeks. My hens... NADA. They are all fat and happily running around their house and run so no one can get out and go hide eggs anywhere. If there were eggs... I would be seeing them. So far... nada

I live in Texas and the weather and temperature has been up and down like a yo yo this year. It hit 100 then a day later it was 85. Would that have any effect on them not laying?

Do I just sit around and keep waiting.. and waiting... and waiting?! My neighbors have been saving cartons for me for months now... and they want eggs! lol (and not to mention the fact that I have a huge amount of shredded zucchini and yellow crock neck squash just waiting to go into making bread ... but have been having to resort to using store bought eggs *blah*.

 

[jeepgurl]

LOL! you sound like a little kid waiting for christmas! exciting, isnt it? be patient.....its gonna happen!

 

[AmyLM]

I know... don't I?? hehehe Its been a long wait so far. How long do I have to wait on average? I know breeds vary. but when do 'most' actually start?

 

[jeepgurl]

They start laying right after you stop checking.

 

[hiddenflock]

Our Ameraucana, TMF, didn't lay until she was over six months old.

If your girl-i-os are still on Start&Grow, that's probably your issue.
Switching to layer feed will most likely give them all the nutrients they need to lay those first eggs.

Purina Layena is what we use, and ours lay wonderful eggs....there's probably an association there!

 

[hiddenflock]

Not wanting to brag, just reccomending a feed brand.

 

[Simmonsfunnyfrm]

I read that the average was 20-24 weeks, but the weather could certainly have something to do with it. Some breeds don't lay well in really hot weather. I had a Buff Orpington hen that didn't lay a single egg til she was 7 months old, and I have a friend who kept an Easter Egger who didn't lay til she was 11 months!! Don't be discouraged, I've been in the same spot as you. I got my first chickens last summer. There were 15 straight run and the ones who didn't perish in that scorching summer heat we had last year all turned out to be roos except for that one BO, so I just ended up selling her to a friend. Now I've got an entirely new flock, and I got them in spring so the summer wouldn't be so hard on them. So you could say I've been waiting a year for eggs and still have at least 6 more weeks to go lol! Chin up! It will be so awesome to get those first ones If I were you I would switch to that layena feed like hiddenflock suggested, and maybe put a fan in your coop or put some ice cubes in the waterer on those blistering hot days. Good luck!

 

[AmyLM]

Yes they have been on layena for a while now. The feed store guy recommended that we switch to in courage egg production. But so far... nada.

And as far as the heat goes... we are doing our best to keep them cool. Our main run guys have an inside/outside the barn situation. They can come and go as they please during the day.

The other guys are in a large mobile coop and are under the shelter of a very large tree and next to the house on the side that only gets a few hours of sun a day. We will be putting fans into both coops soon. And if the heat goes 100+ and looks to stay that way the way we have been told that it did last year... they will all get air conditioning. Seriously. We will be installing an ac in the main coop and merging the two coops into one (even though the birds will have to sort out the pecking order again) just so they can all have the AC.

You would think with so many breeds... SOMEBODY would start laying... but nope. I think the heat may be the culprite here.

So if they don't start laying till they are older... does that mean they will still lay for the same amount of time as if they start laying early?

 

[Simmonsfunnyfrm]

I hope it does. I don't have a lot of experience there but I do know that there are some birds out there known as 'lazy layers' that lay for a year and quit, or just lay one egg every week, etc. They aren't really common, but they do happen, and those birds should be culled. On the bright side, I read most hens are at peak production for about two years from the day they start laying. I think you're supposed to replace your hens every couple years to keep that laying average up, but I also know some people with 6 year old chickens who still lay an egg almost every day.

 

[jeepgurl]

i use the layena too. its running 104-107 degrees right now and besides the eggs that my broody is sitting on, im still getting lots of eggs.