well still no eggs today, day 2, but I kind of expected that. They were laying at the previous coop because their caretaker said she's never seen that color of egg before with her flock so I know they can but just hope they do soon because you know the first egg laid here will be a very expensive egg. Jim says we should blow it out and make it into an ornament if it ever comes
The first egg costs thousands of dollars, after that they're free. Chickens are creatures of habit. Changes create stress. Stress prevents ovulation. After they calm down and get into the new routine, they'll resume. How old are they and what breed/s?
Hi! Funny! I told Jim the first one was the most expensive, then the price just keeps going down....food expenses notwithstanding! Yes, I just need patience..... They're (we THINK) 1.5 to 2 year old Gold Laced Wyandottes (inherited from someone who had to evacuate during the Colorado floods, and they were delivered by their neighbor, so I actually didn't get to speak to the owner but for a brief moment when we were evacuating our cars via an old stage coach road and the coppers were manning the route in case someone got stuck. The deputy looked familiar so I rolled down my window and asked if he was Sheriff Joe to which he replied Yes, and I told him I had his chickens to which he exclaimed "Oh good! Those chickens are yours now, the "chicken experiment" is over, the boy isn't caring for them, the wife and I are, so they are now yours!" And then I had to move my car and that was the end of the convo). So that's why I'm not real sure about the age, the person who delivered them said between 1 and 2 years when I asked her. Off to check the water again! 21F in the coop. And they must be out in the run as the ambient temp is now 21F also. When they're in the coop, they generate about 5-7 degrees of difference. I tarped the outdoor run so they have a nice big area to goof off in that's dry, and they seem OK--out there doing chicken stuff. Thankdog for my new Bogs, my feet are now WARM compared to freezing in my old rubber boots.
Your worst case scenario is your Gold Laced Wyandottes may be near spent. With most egg laying breeds after 3 years of age they are basically pets (they due continue laying but sporadically after that). If they lay brown eggs and their feet are not a vibrant yellow they are getting long in the tooth shall we say. I hope you get a full year of good production you should know in a few more weeks best of luck Yawningreyhound.
Yeah, I soon realized that when I took these girls, something like this might be true. Their eggs are light tan/cream colored and their feet are yellow....vibrant? not so much. I'll have a real dichotomy if (when) they stop. My coop is small and 5 birds are comfortable, but adding more might stress the whole situation. And I'm one of those people who would be a vegetarian if my meat didn't some in little white packages from the store. And if I'm not going to eat them, I don't see myself having them euthanized while still perfectly healthy. Do you just become an old folks' home for chickens once you start collecting them and they stop laying? This means more coop space, you know that right? But I think I'll worry about that tomorrow, Rhett.
If you are wanting eggs and the chickens stop laying them, why not post them up for free on Craigslist? Someone gets some really healthy quality meat, and you have space for more hens! It's a win-win.
Unless they lied about their age and they were fed properly, they certainly aren't spent. Give them time to settle in and by the time the days get a little longer you'll be getting lots of eggs. Wyandottes shouldn't play out for a long time, they just will lay fewer eggs every year and take longer winter breaks. Then you have to decide how much feed you want to buy for the number of eggs a year.
I always give hens a month to get used to the new surroundings and environment before expecting eggs. I got a new hen on Saturday, and she's not even close to laying me an egg yet. I'm not really expecting them either since she is 4 years old.
