Egg laying abilities

[cptkracker]

I was wondering how well wyandottes lay eggs. I have heard sub-par reviews and others christining them as GREAT egg layers! Mine are getting close to laying so I became curious to see what you guys think about their egg laying rate

 

[damselfish]

I think there's a lot of individual variation. I have only two SLWs and they are probably laying 4-5 days out of seven right now in the summer season, but I'm not obsessive about counting my eggs by chicken. Nice sized eggs and more rounded than long. Hope this helps.

 

[Taylor]

their not well suited for eggs in my opinion, their like a ornamental breed for exibition and meat. I have a Golden laced wyandotte and since last summer she may have laid 20 eggs at the most! I don't reccomend wyandottes for egg layers. their free-loaders

 

[Cheep]

I have 6 hens, & my SLW is the champ. She was the 1st one to lay, & so far only one other hen has given me any eggs at all (3 total).

My SLW, Trixie, has given me an egg EVERY DAY since she started laying on July 26. So what's that? 12 days straight.
Each egg has been perfect, & she lays right in the nest. She also does a song & dance routine. The other hens like to look at her, but haven't gotten the idea yet.

Now, my GLW hasn't done anything but be crabby with other hens, & they're the same age, from the same place. Go figure.

 

[Kittymomma]

My SLW's are very pretty, but they're also some of the most skittish birds in my mixed flock and they only give me 3-4 medium size eggs a week. I'll probably always keep a few (love the roos!) because I like the looks of them, but they're no where near the best layers in my flock. My EE's and red sex-links are the most productive except the EE's are as broody as my BO.

 

[cptkracker]

Ya, that's what i've heard. Either good or awful lol never any agreement

 

[spottedtail]

We had a flock of White Wyandottes about 5 years ago.
The egg size never got to be consistantly large, probably averaged medium.
And the egg numbers weren't as high as any of the breeds we've had since then.

I've never cared at all for the fancy laced varieties, but I will say the plain
White Wyandottes were some good looking birds.

The Whites also are plump in the breast area.
After 18 months we butchered this flock.
They made for some nice little roasters.

Overall I like the White Wyandotte breed.
May do this breed again in the future.

spot

 

[AmyRusso]

we're new to having chickens, and are learning as we go. so far, we have three barred rocks that lay 5-7 per week, and three young americaunas (the kids and i can't wait to see what they produce). is there anything in particular that will raise egg laying? we did have a rooster for a little while (unbeknownst to us), and found a clutch of about 12 eggs. the city that we live in does not allow roosters, though, so we can not introduce one in order to increase egg output.

when we first started this veture, the thought was that we would keep the hens until they slacked off laying. then, they would become dinner. we explained it clearly to the kids, to make sure that they did not get attached. now, it looks as though i may have to hurry and cook one up or we will have full burial ceremonies for hens dying of old age. these girls are now HUGE... i swear they will be the size of small turkey soon! has anyone had trouble getting past the first hen slaughter? personally, i would just walk out and grab it by the neck, i really have no remorse. i just need some tips on how to do this in a way that teaches the kids without traumatizing them. help!!

 

[damselfish]

Hi Amy,
1) 5-7 per week is really pretty good.
2) The presence of a rooster doesn't change the amount of eggs laid (Just like any female ovulation cycle, it happens with or without men, right?)
3) Increasing laying...good surroundings, kind treatment, good quality layer feed, not too many treats, plenty of clean water...sort of common sense stuff. There's really no magic bullet.
4) Unless you have done the neck thing before, I'd personally recommend against it. You will most likely not jerk hard enough and end up with a chicken with a half-broken neck, definitely traumatizing for all. Plenty of threads are here on butchering techniques. Whether you think you'll have remorse or not, I'd do the first one without the kids, just in case things do not go right. We chop off heads here...bloody but fast and certain.

They (and you) will get attached. It's inevitable...just do the best you can and perhaps designate an unkillable chicken or two. Unkillable chickens will generally make themselves known to you! We've got two.

You may want to read up on some of the threads and start your own thread with specific questions. I just happened to catch you here because I came back to check this thread from my response before...

Have fun and welcome!

 

[cptkracker]

I agree with unkillables! I find it so much easier to only kill the chickens that get on my nerves