JUMBO Egg Layers (???)

[nccountrygirl]

You would be right, thanks WindyOaksYokes

 

[Frizzledhen]

Thanks WindyOaksYokes. Are BSL's dual purpose or do they put all their energy into laying jumbo eggs?
Gayle

 

[nccountrygirl]

Gayle, they are duel purpose BUT they take sooooo........ long to mature they are not worth eating so if you get any wait for them to lay as they will lay woopers. I hope this helps Laura

 

[Frizzledhen]

Thank you Laura. I can't remember the last time I ate chicken but I sure do enjoy those jumbo eggs.
Gayle

 

[LoneCowboy]

Yeah, that's the chart. I saw the Leghorn one too, and questioned it. I thought maybe they just start out medium.

 

[minnesotahen]

Hey, everyone. I'm new to this site and relatively new to owning laying hens. We have 4 leghorns and 4 other hens that we bought as chicks this spring. They are now HUGE hens (one of the 4 turned out to be a rooster.)

The leghorns were laying 1 egg per day until the days shortened, (I live in Minnesota) and the other 3 hens haven't started laying yet.

Currently we get 2 eggs per day. We have a heat lamp with a red bulb in the coop. (the coop is insulated and free from draft, but has fresh air)

I'm wondering if the heat lamp isn't the right type of light for egg production?? We have the coop wired with a regular white bulb also.

Is this the correct type of light for egg production, or will the red heat lamp do the same thing? Will the 3 hens we raised from chicks lay during the winter? Also, there were 2 broken eggs on the coop floor a couple days ago with paper thin shells. I feed them layer crumble, oyster shell calcium, chicken scratch, grit, as well as scraps such as lettuce and bread.

Thanks for your help!!

 

[spottedtail]

minnesotahen... it is good to hear from a fellow Minnesotan...

You just need 12 hours of light to get good winter egg production. A 40 watt bulb works fine.

If your coop is insulated and free from drafts, no supplemental heat is needed.
My coop is double-walled uninsulated, with no heat, and the hens have done fine every winter.
I think giving heat when it's not needed can damage the hens natural hardiness.

spot

 

[WindyOaksYokes]

minnesotahen, what are the breeds of the others? There are some breeds that do not lay well in the winter or at all. You also need to take that into account. Look at the link on the first page of this post... for the most part I agree with the info... but there is some info I question... such as the egg size on a couple of them. Good Luck and hope you will be getting some good eggs soon.

Lonecowboy... Im with you!!!!

 

[nccountrygirl]

Hey Windy, I'm with y'all to. I think alot of there info is incorrect. If you have ever seen a full grown JGiant you can see why they lay such huge eggs. Laura

 

[Chellester]

I got some Buff Orpington hatching eggs from hinkjc here on the forum, and they are HUGE!!!

I ordered 8 of them to put under one of my broody silkies, and she could barely cover all of them!

I've seen eggs this big before (the occasional double yolker) but never eggs that were consistantly that big!