Culling Layers - Time of Year

[lazy gardener]

It does not make sense to cull a chicken if she's gearing up into an other laying season... unless she's only laying 1 - 2 eggs/week.

 

[Maeschak]

Great, thanks so much for all of the input everyone!

 

[Mosey2003]

I'm in North-Central Illinois. My whole flock went through a HARD molt last fall and all quit laying, some didn't even finish up until January, it was rather bizarre. Started getting 1-2 eggs every day/every other day/every third day about two weeks ago, out of hens that are a mix of just turning 1 and just turning 2. I'm rather unimpressed this year. I just culled a 2 year old hen that was on the list for other reasons and she wasn't even gearing up yet. I'll be culling the whole flock come fall, I think.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

In the fall, Prior to a molt feathers will lose their vibrancy (bleach even more than what the sun has done all summer) and the egg shells will thin before molting. The body's resources are being redirected to another important process-feather making.

I was worried about it until another BYCer, more experienced breeder described the egg shell thinning in the fall as a natural body process before the molt. Not necessarily a sign that the hen is done and a predictor of future production/cessation.

I would wait to see what those hens do in the spring as well. Before making cuts.

 

[ojust4today]

I am on the eastern shore of MD. My hens coop gets open at 7am and we lock it back around 6pm, dusk here this time of year. We do not have any lights or heat lights in the coop. I have 30 Rhode Island reds and I get on average 18 eggs a day and have all winter. There were a few days when it got down near the teens and there were a difference in the egg count but for the most part I get 18-20 per day.
Many of my friends hens have stopped laying all together or they are getting a cpl eggs a day for most of this winter. They have been getting eggs from me under the circumstances.
Something I do that I believe really plays a part into productive egg production is they have access to layer crumble at all times. I give them a coffee container of scratch a day and lastly every scrap our household has goes into a scrap bucket for the hens.