asked a million times but here it is again

[MedinaChick2001]

I recently got rid of my rooster and my 9 hens seem fine, however I am only getting 3-4 eggs a day. My mother-in-law says its because I have no rooster so they won't lay now. I have been told you don't need a rooster for the hens to lay. Anyone know???

 

[trunkman]

The rooster no longer being there may be the problem but I'm sure things will get back to normal for you. Any sudden change in their surroundings will effect their egg laying till they feel comfortable again. For instance I introduced chicks to the coop and the hens egg laying dropped by 50 percent and after a week or so went back up to normal.

 

[CityClucks]

No rooster necessary to get eggs - trunkman is right.
(what do mothers-in-law know, anyway?!

)

 

[sonew123]

your MIL is clueless haha..you dont need the rooster around unless you want fertile eggs and a partial protection from from predators-they are just adjusting to him being gone is all....hope they kick back into production soon for you-could they be moulting too?

 

[catdaddy66]

The old "need a roo to get the hens to lay" argument, eh? Eggs come from the girl/hen regardless of the presence of a male/roo. Do human women stop ovulating if they are single? I think not. All a rooster is going to do is fertilize the eggs to make baby chicks. I can't tell you how many people do not get this fact. Recently on Regis and Kelli, Regis was interviewing William H. Macy and was unable to understand this fact, not believing what the actor told him. Eggs are produced to be fertilized, but most are not. The hens continue to lay as their biological clock tells them to do.

 

[MedinaChick2001]

Thank you. I didn't think she was right. They are right about a year old. I'm not quite sure about molting...

 

[PapaChaz]

Son-in-law gave me a roo he got from someone he works with. I've had him in with the girls, since they're all mixed breeds, i'm not really that interested with breeding. I'm thinking of taking him out of the coop and letting him free range all the time. So this wouldn't effect the girls laying habits at all then? good to know, but not sure how happy he'd be if he can't get in to them. He starts his crowing around 4 am each morning....i'm gonna have to teach him to tell time a little better, LOL

 

[dewey]

If anything I think they lay more without a rooster around pestering them all the time, lol. I've come across a lot of people that believe a roo is needed...not sure how they explain commercial egg producers.

 

[schellie69]

They are just adjusting to the change. I did not have a rooster for over a year and I got eggs. I think that is an old myth that people still believe.

 

[jaimslee4u]

I have heard this soooo many times. It makes me laugh everytime. A rooster is deffinately not needed to lay eggs. The drop in egg production could me a number of things. Spring moulting or the change in pecking order perhaps.

This is a bit off of the subject but just to prove the strange things people can say I had a girl from work almost violently argue with me that they DO NOT have a rooster but her boyfriends chicken layed eggs and because they did not get pulled out in time they hatched. Ummm helloooo, but if you had any type of sex ed in school you know what it takes to make a baby. Even if that baby had feathers!