A few egg questions.....

[theRURALgirl]

Hello my poultry friends! I have two questions and though I know I can research I have 19 month old twins and this is way faster. LOL So first, I have 5 hens who are laying every day, except for one (remember the except for one for the second question

), They all seem to lay at different times of the day so I am back and forth always checking. Question 1, how long can the eggs sit before collecting them?

Now the second question, and this is weird, tonight after feeding my chickens I was walking back to the house and right there in the front yard was an egg, very soft shell and still a littel wet. I am wondering if this is the one hen who hasn't given me anything yet. But what does this mean and why would she just plop down in the front yard? Btw, we have free range ladies so they are all over the acreage.

Thanks as usual!!!!

 

[chi-rn]

First question.... the eggs would be fine if you collected only once a day. A good reason to collect more often is to avoid future issues with egg-eating... but once a day collection is safe for your eating. Second... since she's just beginning to lay, this may be a "practice egg" that will improve with time. But it sounds like she could definitely use more calcium in her diet. Do they have access to commercial layer feed all day? You can buy "flock blocks" for field use that contain calcium too. Make sure you put some crushed oyster shell where the girls can easily access it. You may have to keep the new layer in the pen until she learns (with the help of a ceramic egg or golf ball in the nest) where she's supposed to lay. It's harder with girls who free-range all day... they have more opportunity to pick a favorite spot... & it can be difficult to convince them to go to a coop for laying. You can try putting a free-standing (easily constructed) nest box in the spot where she's laying, put ceramic egg in it & gradually move closer to the coop, but it's easier to keep her in the run until she learns....

 

[theRURALgirl]

Thank you for that information. They do have food all day but it seems like at night they want fresh food, maybe I have spoiled them. LOL I also give them back all the shells because I was told that was great for calcium. I will look into the oyster shell. There coop does have chicken wire around it but they can come and go, it's more to keep my twins from playing in what they think is their play house. LOL I will put the golf ball back in the nesting box and see if I can place her in there a few times a day. it worked for the other girls, maybe she is just a slow learner. LOL