Is my egg amount normal?

[NatJ]

They lay all day long, they’re often not done until 4pm. Some days I go in at 4 and there are still chickens laying eggs. So keeping them in the coop would be a little hard.

What does the laying time have to do with keeping them shut in the coop?

The common advice to lock them in is assuming that feed and water are available in the coop, and that the coop is big enough that the chickens can stay in for several days without it being a big deal. If that is the case, just leave them shut in and see how many eggs you get.

 

[SourRoses]

Other animals also eat eggs. Like goannas.

We don't have Goannas over here but you're right in that Possums come to steal eggs!

OP, you said they get scratch and mealworms as well as their feed... about what percentage of their diet?
Scratch is such low protein that it can drive down their total protein consumption, and since you're starting at a 17% feed, that's not far to go before it's too low. Studies have found low protein can reduce laying rate and egg size.

As for how normal that productivity is, at this time of year, count your 1 year old hens as the number of eggs you should be getting most days.
Even with less productive breeds I usually get about 5 eggs a week per hen. Some can even be every day layers. It's more a matter of whether they are in lay, and how long it takes them to go broody. It's spring, hormones are in the air... are you sure more of those late day layers are not broody or trying to be? (I have two silly wannabe broodies who think they only need to spend half their time on the nest, but it's enough to halt their egg production).

 

[RcoM]

We don't have Goannas over here but you're right in that Possums come to steal eggs!

OP, you said they get scratch and mealworms as well as their feed... about what percentage of their diet?
Scratch is such low protein that it can drive down their total protein consumption, and since you're starting at a 17% feed, that's not far to go before it's too low. Studies have found low protein can reduce laying rate and egg size.

As for how normal that productivity is, at this time of year, count your 1 year old hens as the number of eggs you should be getting most days.
Even with less productive breeds I usually get about 5 eggs a week per hen. Some can even be every day layers. It's more a matter of whether they are in lay, and how long it takes them to go broody. It's spring, hormones are in the air... are you sure more of those late day layers are not broody or trying to be? (I have two silly wannabe broodies who think they only need to spend half their time on the nest, but it's enough to halt their egg production).

Hi Souroses, just a quick question about scratch mix. It may vary depending where you were getting it from. Mine looks to be quite high in protein due to a lot of sunflower seed – black type. Now be checking my scratch mix to see what the percentage is if possible

 

[NatJ]

Hi Souroses, just a quick question about scratch mix. It may vary depending where you were getting it from. Mine looks to be quite high in protein due to a lot of sunflower seed – black type. Now be checking my scratch mix to see what the percentage is if possible

I'm not SourRoses, but I can say it is pretty common to see scratch grains around 8% protein. It varies quite a bit from one brand or mix to another. I have never seen a scratch mixture that was anywhere close to the protein level that a complete feed ought to be for chickens-- but I haven't seen every possible kind of scratch, so there may be one out there that I just haven't seen yet.

If you can find the percent protein for your mix on the label, I'd be curious to hear what it is.

 

[RcoM]

I'm not SourRoses, but I can say it is pretty common to see scratch grains around 8% protein. It varies quite a bit from one brand or mix to another. I have never seen a scratch mixture that was anywhere close to the protein level that a complete feed ought to be for chickens-- but I haven't seen every possible kind of scratch, so there may be one out there that I just haven't seen yet.

If you can find the percent protein for your mix on the label, I'd be curious to hear what it is.

Hi there!
I went to their website. I buy this brand due to the high amount of sunflower seed which is 21% protein.
I discovered other goodies in my scratch mix, too.
https://thevellagroup.com.au/product/item/free-range-scratch-mix/

I don't feed it as the staple. It's just breakfast starter or treat. They have high quality pellets available during the day and free range of an afternoon, under supervision.

 

[NatJ]

Hi there!
I went to their website. I buy this brand due to the high amount of sunflower seed which is 21% protein.
I discovered other goodies in my scratch mix, too.
https://thevellagroup.com.au/product/item/free-range-scratch-mix/

I don't feed it as the staple. It's just breakfast starter or treat. They have high quality pellets available during the day and free range of an afternoon, under supervision.

That is the highest percent protein I have ever seen for a scratch mix.

When I look at the website, I find this:
"Grain mix with nutrient shortcut pellet containing essential nutrients required by Laying Hens. Can be fed as a treat and or on its own or...."

So that particular mixture is made in a way that it can be a complete feed. The ingredients include "Nutri-Pellet containing Canola & Soybean Meal..." So there are some other high protein ingredients too, not just the sunflower seeds.

I notice from the address of the company that it is in Australia. That may explain some of the differences.

I am in the USA, and so are several of the other people in this thread (OP is in Missouri, SourRoses is in Florida). Over here, "scratch" is a name for something that is absolutely NOT a complete feed. I do not know if there is a law requiring such labels, or if it is just a convention, but it is common enough that I don't think anyone with experience will expect a bag of "scratch" in a store in the USA to provide protein anywhere close to what a laying hen needs.

So I think we may be seeing a country-specific difference in how the words are used.

Examples of "scratch" in the USA:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Healthy-Harvest-Scratch-Grain-Treat-for-Chickens-40-lb-Bag/875337627
Information on the page includes:
"Designed to be fed as a treat to meet your flock’s energy needs."
"Feed at no more than 10-15% of the diet."
"Not a complete feed, use as a treat only."
When I zoom in on the photo of the back of the bag, I see the protein is 8%

https://www.amazon.com/Manna-Pro-1000853-Ultimate-Chickens/dp/B01MRZIEHC
Despite costing 4 times as much as the one above, and despite saying it's a "protein rich" mixture, this one is 9% protein.

From a store with several options, several different price points of scratch:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/producers-pride-scratch-grain-50-lb
8% protein, cheapest
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/purina-organic-scratch-grains-35-lb
7% protein, more than double the per-pound cost of the one above
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...o-premium-scratch-with-herbs-10-lb-scratch-10
10% protein, 10 times the per-pound cost of the cheapest from this store
(The higher prices are mostly for products that are "organic" and/or "non gmo")