how many eggs should i expect to get...**UPDATE**....

[redhen]

hi..i was wondering how many eggs per week/day i should expect to get with 9 hens?..thanks.Wendy

**Well...my flock size has grown since this post..they are all still chicks...but now i have 27 chicks..all were pullet runs..except 6 silkies and 2 ameracaunas and 1 polish....so i may have some roosters out of those....so...basically 18 pullets.....and the other 9..were not sure what sex they are...so can anyone give me any idea what to expect for eggs now?....by the way...Hi, my name is Wendy and i have a chicken addiction.

...it started out as a small thing..now.......

...lol..Wendy

 

[Jolyn]

Ooooooooo good question. I also have nine hens and am curious what others think.

 

[jemagsy]

It depends on the breed as different breeds lay different amounts of eggs. What type of chickens do you have?

2 Barred Rock - 4/wk each total 8
2 GC - ??
3 RIR - 5/wk each total 15
2 Ameracauna - 3/wk each total 6

So you're looking around 2-3 dozen eggs per week depending on circumstances.

(I pulled the egg laying averages off my pet chicken's breed selector in case)

 

[redhen]

well....they are only a week old..lol...(cant wait!!)..but i have 2 RIR, 1 white rock, 2 blk. sex links, 1 silver spangled hamburg,1 silver lakenvelder,1 polish(gender unknown), and hopefully, 1 welsummer (this week)..thanks..Wendy

 

[jemagsy]

Assuming all pullets/hens averages would be around

2 RIR - 5/wk (10/wk)
1 white rock - 4/wk
2 blk. sex links - ?(guessing an avg of 3/wk each)? (6/wk)
1 silver spangled hamburg - 4/wk
1 silver lakenvelder - 3/wk
1 polish(gender unknown) - 2/wk
1 welsummer - 3/wk

Right around (avg) of 2 1/2 to 3 dozen per week... but if memory from what I've been reading serves correctly blk sex links are better layers than 3/wk. Perhaps somebody else has an answer for that?

 

[redhen]

wow!!..thank you SO much for all the effort you made to help me out!..very nice of you!..thanks again..wendy

 

[Davaroo]

Way too complicated for me, but nice work there jemasgy.

Truth is, there is no way to predict with certainty what any of them will do. Some may go broody, others may not like the heat, etc. There are slowdowns and turnarounds and egg eaters... well, you get the idea.
But since you are after a general number, those given here are a good educated guess. And they strike me as close enough, just to have something to work around.

With the mixed lot of breeds you have there, I personally would expect anything from 1.5-2.5 dozen/week. But then, I'm a "wait and see" sort of person.

This is one of the many reasons I echo the old advice of keeping only one or two breeds. You get a much more consistent result.

 

[redhen]

yes..that makes sense...if some lay more than others..etc., how will i know what to expect and when to expect them?...also..if a hen gets egg bound..it may harder for me to notice it!...but..now i'm in it with all these different breeds..so i'll just have to be super alert to their differant patterns of laying(which i know NOTHING about!)...come laying time(which i'm not even sure when to expect that!)..i'll be posting all sort of panicked questions..lol..thanks, Wendy

 

[Davaroo]

This is where it pays to take notes.
Get to know your birds and how they behave. Not with you in their faces, but watching from a few paces. Learn their patterns a bit and youll now when they are changing.
Expect the first eggs at18-20 weeks, so start layer feed at 16 weeks.
Alternately, add oyster shell grit in a side feeder to the starter ration you are already feeding them.

 

[redhen]

thanks...cant wait till then!!..thanks, Wendy