Does anyone keep an egg journal?

[BCMominMD]

If so, what do you record and what do you learn from it?
I think I'm going to keep one for awhile and I'm wondering what kind of things I should record: date/age of hen, color of egg, weather?

 

[Puck-Puck]

No eggs yet, so no journal. But I could see myself keeping a record of how many eggs a day/week, to see if...how shall I say...to see if the hens were keeping up with their rent. I have a formula worked out of how many eggs would be acceptable to me for this to be a break-even venture. It would also help me price eggs for sale: eggs relative to feed cost. (Maybe not fair to the chickens, as I don't have any similar standard for my dogs!)

 

[wegotchickens]

For the first year I kept track of when a new feed bag was opened and how many eggs we got each day, and whether they were brown or green. Showed who was paying their rent and what it was worth. Can't remember the results, but we were satisfied with the feed to egg ratio.

Now I don't write it down, but still keep track of who's laying and how often.

 

[gritsar]

I couldn't keep track of who laid which egg unless I spent all day in the coop.
I do keep track of how many eggs I get a day, how many I sell each day and to whom.
I helps me know if I have a sudden slowdown and when my regular customers are likely to need eggs again.

 

[AnnesChicks]

I am keeping a simple egg tally on my calendar. It helped to convince me that our girls are paying their rent in full. First full month of laying was June = 104 eggs. We have eight hens which seems just right so far. We average 5/6 a day.

Just out of interest for myself I started to track production vs costs. Our modest little coop cost about $300, we are at the end of our second bag of feed and first big bag of scratch. Yes we could buy eggs cheaper at the store, but not only the flavor of fresh eggs, but the joy of raising chickens is priceless.

 

[warren]

I keep a list of who lays what on a callendar. My 18 month old has laid 390 eggs since she started and my 16 month old has laid 335. Both are goldlines. My 4 year old has laid 40 eggs this year but has not laid for a few months now. She is really a pet now.
I also note when I open a new bag of feed.

 

[Cats Critters]

For a couple months I did I recorded how many eggs and how many of each color, and what ever I wanted about that day setting eggs hatching eggs etc. , but It became a hassle so now I just record what ever I want like setting eggs etc.

 

[keljonma]

Yes we keep an flock history & egg journal. It has everything in it. Including when hatched, NPIP#, what they are fed, when they molt, a picture and dimensions of first eggs, any illnesses or injuries and treatments. Feed costs are also included. While they were growing, I kept track of which were social, liked petted or held, and some personality traits. It also includes a log of who lays eggs every day. Our hens are 2 and 3 years old.

 

[saddina]

I track it all for end of the year taxes, I use the excell sheet someone posted a while back....

let me dig up the post...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=124260&p=1

Here you go.

 

[Rusty's Ranch]

I just took the girls in for a "check-up" at the bird vet and he suggested keeping an egg journal just to track for potential problems. He said the birds should fall into a pretty regular egg laying pattern, and if the pattern changes, you can hopefully detect a problem before it gets too serious.

We only have 2 chickens, so it shouldn't be too much hassle to track. We'll see how long I actually keep it up. If I only get 1 egg for more than a few days - I think I'll know I have a problem.