First Egg Countdown

[kpgoldstar]

My girls were just starting to lay the couple weeks before I had to leave town. I left early Wednesday morning and just got back this afternoon. The 2 weeks leading up to our trip we were not getting an egg a day yet. Maybe every other day, pretty sure we had one consistent layer and a new one just started with not seeing the 2nd egg from her yet. My chicken babysitters got two eggs Wednesday night then had an egg Thursday morning!! I have never had a morning egg yet! They got another 2 eggs Thursday evening with one from what they think may be another new hen laying - so now I probably have 3 of 4 laying - yippee! They got another one Friday morning and we got 2 eggs this afternoon. I hope I am well on my way to 3-4 eggs a day! Could be that they fed WAY more than I normally would have over the couple days but oh well. I am happy I have reliable chicken watchers!

I hope those little hoodlums weren't just showing off their newly found egg-laying skills and are going back to 1 egg every three days for me... hmmmm. This mama was none too pleased that my babysitters got all the eggs! Payment in exchange for caring for them.

 

[chicksurreal]

My girls were just starting to lay the couple weeks before I had to leave town. I left early Wednesday morning and just got back this afternoon. The 2 weeks leading up to our trip we were not getting an egg a day yet. Maybe every other day, pretty sure we had one consistent layer and a new one just started with not seeing the 2nd egg from her yet. My chicken babysitters got two eggs Wednesday night then had an egg Thursday morning!! I have never had a morning egg yet! They got another 2 eggs Thursday evening with one from what they think may be another new hen laying - so now I probably have 3 of 4 laying - yippee! They got another one Friday morning and we got 2 eggs this afternoon. I hope I am well on my way to 3-4 eggs a day! Could be that they fed WAY more than I normally would have over the couple days but oh well. I am happy I have reliable chicken watchers!

I hope those little hoodlums weren't just showing off their newly found egg-laying skills and are going back to 1 egg every three days for me... hmmmm. This mama was none too pleased that my babysitters got all the eggs! Payment in exchange for caring for them.

Haha! That's too funny! I really do think that my chickens love to tease me! Of course, I also think that they can carry on a conversation with me... Lol!

So far, I think I've gotten my two eggs in the afternoon. I check around noon, but there are no eggs until after 2:00 PM. It's just so exciting, raising them from baby chicks to the point where they do their "thing" with no help from me at all. It's fairly humbling actually.

 

[AmericanMom]

Gathered 3 pullet eggs today...they are picking up steam...Felt good to walk into the house with 9 eggs today!!!!

 

[chicksurreal]

Gathered 3 pullet eggs today...they are picking up steam...Felt good to walk into the house with 9 eggs today!!!!

Wow! Yaayyyy! It's just too much fun, isn't it?

 

[kpgoldstar]

Haha! That's too funny! I really do think that my chickens love to tease me! Of course, I also think that they can carry on a conversation with me... Lol!

So far, I think I've gotten my two eggs in the afternoon. I check around noon, but there are no eggs until after 2:00 PM. It's just so exciting, raising them from baby chicks to the point where they do their "thing" with no help from me at all. It's fairly humbling actually.

I was only out of town for a couple days but it seems as if my girls went from juvenile teens to true ladies in that short time. It is amazing how much they can change when you don't see them. They are full feathered, combs and wattles are red and grown out. They aren't as frantic when let out to free range and they wander the entire yard rather than staying in one small area. It is awesome to see them grow and mature and eventually give you the prize you have been waiting for!

 

[chicksurreal]

I was only out of town for a couple days but it seems as if my girls went from juvenile teens to true ladies in that short time. It is amazing how much they can change when you don't see them. They are full feathered, combs and wattles are red and grown out. They aren't as frantic when let out to free range and they wander the entire yard rather than staying in one small area. It is awesome to see them grow and mature and eventually give you the prize you have been waiting for!

It's interesting that you say that about them wandering the yard. I've noticed over the last few days that they tend to do that too. We have a good amount of property, about 5 acres, but it's surrounded by wilderness. Nobody lives very close to us, so they have a huge area that they can run around on. Lately, they have decided to explore much more of it than they ever did before.

I always accompany them on their free-range time these days since we have a bobcat that killed two of our cockerels (and hasn't been caught). We spend hours every day just wandering around and they have really become much more bold in the last week, even hiking up the side of a craggy peak that is very near to our home. I get much more exercise than I used to. I should write a book about how to lose weight with chickens!

 

[Happy Chooks]

Bobcats are very difficult to trap. (so are foxes) Your best bet is to scare it away. My dog ran our bobcat off. (after it got my favorite hen)


My EE that my broody raised for me last September started laying a couple of days ago. It's a very pale blue.

 

[chicksurreal]

Bobcats are very difficult to trap. (so are foxes) Your best bet is to scare it away. My dog ran our bobcat off. (after it got my favorite hen)


My EE that my broody raised for me last September started laying a couple of days ago. It's a very pale blue.

Congratulations on the blue egg!!!! And sorry to hear about your poor hen.

And, yes this bobcat has been around here for at least a year and VERY difficult to trap, he's decimated most of the flocks around here because people free range with no protection and he will come around any time of day. He or she has been seen multiple times, even treed by my MIL's dog, but he still got away.

 

[beccaboo254]

Congrats!  That could be a Cornish egg.

After some stalking today, it is indeed a Cornish bantam egg! She laid again today!

 

[kpgoldstar]

chicksurreal, someone on the AZ thread just recently trapped a bobcat. I can't remember who but if you scroll through the photos she took a pic of it in her trap cage. If I find it I will pm you who it was.

My continuing egg saga... my sitters were getting an egg in the morning (which I have NEVER had) and a couple in the evening. We got home from a couple days away Friday evening and found 2 eggs! One in the nest box and one under the roost. This morning I went out to feed breakfast hoping to find that elusive morning egg. NOPE! I didn't get one. But then I went out again around 10 before I had to leave for town and there it was! A morning egg!

The best part of the story though is we got home around 4:00 today and wouldn't you know it?? There were THREE eggs in the nest boxes!! WOOOHOOO!! That means all 4 of my girls are now laying. One of them for sure was a first egg, just as small as the other first eggs we've gotten so far. Well, of course that is assuming that no one laid 2 eggs today LOL!