Is there any way you can get your birds to lay more?

[CochinLover1]

I have some breeds that don't lay a lot of eggs. I was wondering, is there anything I could add to their diet that would encourage their bodies to lay more?

 

[Bridebeliever]

What breeds do you have? Is it just because of decreased sunlight right now or have you had them for a long time and you are talking about year round laying? Some breeds are prolific layers and have had that bred into them, others are just average layers because they are intended to be dual purpose, for meat and eggs. A chicken that is a laying machine just doesn't make a good table bird, they become stew birds.

 

[Gossie]

My chickens were laying an average of 1 egg every 2 weeks this winter and so I tried putting a light in the coop to give them some more light because I heard that chickens need at least 16 hours of light to lay an egg. I don't know if there is anything you can use food-wise to increase egg production.

 

[CochinLover1]

My chickens were laying an average of 1 egg every 2 weeks this winter and so I tried putting a light in the coop to give them some more light because I heard that chickens need at least 16 hours of light to lay an egg. I don't know if there is anything you can use food-wise to increase egg production.

Ok, thank you for your feedback.

 

[Bridebeliever]

Here's a good article on increasing production!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/what-affects-egglaying-and-how-to-increase-egg-production

 

[CochinLover1]

Here's a good article on increasing production!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/what-affects-egglaying-and-how-to-increase-egg-production

Thanks! I will get to reading.

 

[aart]

I have some breeds that don't lay a lot of eggs. I was wondering, is there anything I could add to their diet that would encourage their bodies to lay more?

Take the sweaters off them, they are ticked off at you..lol!


Light in winter can help, especially if it's applied correctly, but not always.

That 'article' says to add scratch for more protein...that's not accurate, most scratch mixes are significantly lower in protein than a balanced chicken ration..
You need to look at all foods given and their protein contents to balance overall nutrients.

Seriously if you want to figure it out, here are some things to investigate:
What exactly are you feeding?
What breeds, and their ages, do you have?
How big is your coop (feet by feet) and how many birds total?
How do you keep their water liquid?
Do they free range?

 

[lazy gardener]

Other suggestions: switch to a breed that is known for being productive. Check out Henderson's chicken breeds chart. Start fermenting their feed. Give them a light, but that may be a waste of time, as winter is almost over. But you could do that next year. Switch them to Multi-flock and provide oyster shell on the side. Be sure you are practicing flock rotation: remove a few of the older ones, and add a few chicks each year.

 

[CochinLover1]

Take the sweaters off them, they are ticked off at you..lol!


Light in winter can help, especially if it's applied correctly, but not always.

That 'article' says to add scratch for more protein...that's not accurate, most scratch mixes are significantly lower in protein than a balanced chicken ration..
You need to look at all foods given and their protein contents to balance overall nutrients.

Seriously if you want to figure it out, here are some things to investigate:
What exactly are you feeding?
What breeds, and their ages, do you have?
How big is your coop (feet by feet) and how many birds total?
How do you keep their water liquid?
Do they free range?

I have a lot of different breeds. I have a large coop, they are all free range, they have heated waters in the winter so it's always liquid. I feed them non GMO grain that we get from a local farmer.

 

[aart]

Quote: Free ranging...they could be laying out in range area.
Do you know the protein percentage of the feed you are providing?
Is it just grain or is there a premix added to grain for other nutrients