Changes that boosted winter egg production from 1 to 6 per day

[legacyln]

Thought I'd mention a couple things I did recently for the comfort of the hens that also resulted in increased egg production -- from 1/day to 5/day and climbing.

My chicken house is not well insulated and one hen was molting in early December, and I decided to go ahead and put the brooder light w/a red bulb in it in, even though my family never heated our hen houes when I was growing up. I just felt bad for the girls, so...

Also, I previously watered outside in the run and was giving fresh water every morning, but with the cold tem,ps, that meant that on some days the watyer would freeze and they might go part of the evening without any water. So I shelled out the cash for a water heater at the feed store and set it up inside them henhouse since I noticed with the red light they get off the roost a bit in the evebings to eat.

The increase in eggs began after I added the heat lamp but really took off after I heated the water, which makes sense since of course they could not have been getting enough water before not only for egg production but also just for their general health.

Healthy girls

 

[farmerlor]

We put in a heat light and put the waterer under it. No more frozen water, the coop is slightly warmer and we have 11-13 eggs a day from our 17 girlies but 7 of my girlies have only just turned 26 weeks old so they may not all be mature yet.

 

[Eastins Eggs]

It's not the heat but the extra light.

 

[needmorechickens!]

I had been throwing the idea of adding a red heat lamp to my mixed coop, which has most of my egg layers in it. I think I will try it for a week or so and see how it changes!
~Rebecca

 

[Splash_Guard]

Sounds good. I must have hit upon the perfection in my hen house: 250 watt red light runs 24/7; full spectrum white, 60 watt is on 15 hours/day. A water heater is a MUST in cold regions to keep the water from freezing. Getting 19 a day from 23 hens - can't find the 4 slackers....

 

[seafood]

My egg production was cut to absolutely nothing in November. A few of the hens were going through a mild winter molt...but all of the others were fine.

2 weeks ago I added a light in the coop that gives them 14 hours of "daylight". I am now getting 4 or 5 eggs a day. It really is amazing how they were created and what their systems react to.

 

[rooster0209]

I wonder if mine are molting. How can you tell? They arent loosing alot of feathers but there are quite a few feathers on the floor. What do molting chickens look like?

 

[seafood]

Mine are only 9 months old and I have heard conflicting stories on molting prior to one year of age. I do not believe mine went through a full molt. However there were lots of feathers in the coop and about 4 hens were missing almost all of their neck feathers. I just assume thats what was happening.

 

[legacyln]

I'm up to 10 eggs a day now from 12 girls.

The molt we had in December was a light one where she lost lots of neck feathers and just looked really raggedy in general. Even w/a heavy molt, usually they don't lose all the feathers, they just look VERY bedraggled and you can see lots of pin feathers coming in.

 

[miron28]

my chickens haven't laid a egg in 2 week i guess i have to try the light plus they are going thorugh a heavy molt.