I have 2 roos, 18 hens, mixed flock.
4 bantams, a red and? are just over a year old.
picked up more this spring, 3 white p rocks (1 roo), 3 buff orp (1 roo), 4 dark bramaha, and a couple others.
the older ones layed pretty good, but fell off when the younger ones started, for what I can tell. I was only able to get 12 eggs 1 time.
I had all in a smaller coop (4x8 or 32sq') knowing they needed a bigger coop soon. so I built a 10x10 or 100sq' new coop and hooked it up to the run on the other end. figured once all was well with the new one, I would remove the small one. so I gave them three weeks to roam between the 2 coops and sleep where ever they wanted. they never slept in the new coop.
knowing winter is coming quickly, I had to cover the run before its to cold and I didn't want to do it. I disconnected the old coop that one night and covered the run with a tarp just like last year. I let them free range that day, that night I carried them all into the new coop and placed them on the roosting bar.
egg production was so so, started to slack off as time went by. I figured since I forced them into the larger one they went on strike and give them some time, 2-3 weeks have went by and in the last 3 days I got 2 eggs. I do see traces of yoke in 2 boxes, but that's it. I added the light a week ago, 13 hours of light as of now. still nothing.
what can I do? what am I missing?
4 bantams, a red and? are just over a year old.
picked up more this spring, 3 white p rocks (1 roo), 3 buff orp (1 roo), 4 dark bramaha, and a couple others.
the older ones layed pretty good, but fell off when the younger ones started, for what I can tell. I was only able to get 12 eggs 1 time.
I had all in a smaller coop (4x8 or 32sq') knowing they needed a bigger coop soon. so I built a 10x10 or 100sq' new coop and hooked it up to the run on the other end. figured once all was well with the new one, I would remove the small one. so I gave them three weeks to roam between the 2 coops and sleep where ever they wanted. they never slept in the new coop.
knowing winter is coming quickly, I had to cover the run before its to cold and I didn't want to do it. I disconnected the old coop that one night and covered the run with a tarp just like last year. I let them free range that day, that night I carried them all into the new coop and placed them on the roosting bar.
egg production was so so, started to slack off as time went by. I figured since I forced them into the larger one they went on strike and give them some time, 2-3 weeks have went by and in the last 3 days I got 2 eggs. I do see traces of yoke in 2 boxes, but that's it. I added the light a week ago, 13 hours of light as of now. still nothing.
what can I do? what am I missing?
