I've tried all the suggested methods for determining this and have found all but one faulty. The fingers between the pelvic bone is all relative...is she a big ol' gal anyway? If she is, she just may have a wide set pelvis. I've butchered a few good layers due to this whole pelvis issue.
Same with the coloring of the legs, beek, comb, wattles...you name it, color means nothing sometimes. Or sometimes you have a black hen with black legs and then where are you at with the yellow color?
If your lipstick doesn't actually lay but still likes to nest and pretend, you could find lipstick on any egg that was already in the nest and she has sat upon.
Loose and moist vent? Been there, done that. Butchered a gal that had a dry and normal vent, narrow pelvis, pale legs , etc. only to find her full of eggs in all stages of growth.
The only foolproof way I've found is to actually glove up after the gals have hit the roost and do a quick bend over and cough exam.....
A finger up the vent should be able to palpate next day's egg. If you can't feel it, she isn't a daily layer. If that is alright for you, then mark the ones that have an egg. Count your eggs the next day....do the numbers equal?
Next night, do the digital exam again. The marked gals should have another egg and you may find some that weren't marked that have one....these may be your sporadic layers. The gals that have eggs two days in a row are likely your steady layers. I cull all birds that do not have an egg in the canal for two nights in a row. I want daily layers and I'll even take one that lays every other day....but not one that is more sporadic than that.
You must also take into account the time of year....you don't want to cull during moult. Plenty of good layers slow down a little during moult and in the winter months~this is okay with me, they deserve a rest. The best time to cull for laying is in peak laying times when all hens should be producing~Feb/Mar through June/July.
Same with the coloring of the legs, beek, comb, wattles...you name it, color means nothing sometimes. Or sometimes you have a black hen with black legs and then where are you at with the yellow color?
If your lipstick doesn't actually lay but still likes to nest and pretend, you could find lipstick on any egg that was already in the nest and she has sat upon.
Loose and moist vent? Been there, done that. Butchered a gal that had a dry and normal vent, narrow pelvis, pale legs , etc. only to find her full of eggs in all stages of growth.
The only foolproof way I've found is to actually glove up after the gals have hit the roost and do a quick bend over and cough exam.....
Next night, do the digital exam again. The marked gals should have another egg and you may find some that weren't marked that have one....these may be your sporadic layers. The gals that have eggs two days in a row are likely your steady layers. I cull all birds that do not have an egg in the canal for two nights in a row. I want daily layers and I'll even take one that lays every other day....but not one that is more sporadic than that.
You must also take into account the time of year....you don't want to cull during moult. Plenty of good layers slow down a little during moult and in the winter months~this is okay with me, they deserve a rest. The best time to cull for laying is in peak laying times when all hens should be producing~Feb/Mar through June/July.
