at the present I only have 3 laying hens which have laid me an egg everyday since they were 4 months old (RSL) went to collect their rent and only had 2 eggs so I left them in their run a bit longer they only get to come out after all eggs have been given,well at 1 p.m. and still just 2 eggs I let them out they foraged all afternoon until it started to get dark and they came back to their coop/run we were out there expanding the run making way for our 15 new babies that will be added in a few months, so I am standing there and Ms. Henny Penny comes over and is looking like something is bad wrong with her I watch her for a bit and she is standing up head sunken in her shoulders feathers all puffed up I reach down to pet her she steps to one side and there was my egg,she paid her rent what a sweet girl she is came back to the nest to give me that wonderful egg
Cute story! And "paying their rent" is a line I am so stealing! We have 3 RSL in our mixed flock and they are wonderful birds. Originally I wanted them for their egg-laying ability, but after finding out what sweet and funny personalities they have, I'm hooked on them. There for a while, I thought one of them (Scottie) was going nuts, she began pecking me (hard!) whenever I went in the coop or run. It turned out, she just loves to be held! She has since learned not to peck me so hard and I've learned to pick her up when she comes running. Scottie helps me check the nesting boxes and we have very serious discussions about each egg laid (her's are the best of course). She is the calmest and friendliest girl we have. Love those RSL's!
how sweet when I bought the 6 the were suppose to be all BO, so glad they were not or I probly would of had all roosters,the 3 that are BO are roosters,and yes they are so sweet and I as have1 that follows me everywhere.Ms.Heeny Peeny,she likes for me to turn over rocks and move my potted plants to get the bugs...woohoo here she is she was the last one to lay her egg at 4 months old !!!! she is helping my husband build our deck...lol
I have a Production Red I named Sweets because she really is so nice. I found out hybrids, links, and production types are more prone to ovarian cancer and other reproduction complications, and get frail bones from the egg strain. They often only live a couple years. I will be getting no more of this type unless they are rescues.
wow free feather I did not know that...makes since beings they were breed for egg production, I figured after 2 years they would almost be through laying, so I was thinking that I would have to replace the flock at least every couple years
I am going thru a hard time right now. I got 10 chicks 2 and a half years ago at the feed store, all of them are from a hatchery (3 production reds, 2 barred rocks, 2 white leghorns, 2 EE and 1 black sex link) I only have 4 left (all of them are very dear for me because they were my first chickens and they were all very sweet). The ones that I have lost had egg peritonitis, one had ovarian cancer, one had necrosis on the hip joint. Right now I have my barred rock with signs of egg peritonitis, she quit laying about a week ago, she is not as active as she used to be. I picked her up today and her abdomen is distended, I am watching her carefully, I will give her her favorite treats every day and treat her like a queen. I know that eventually she will have to go. They all gave us lots of wonderful eggs and now I wish they would have slowed down a bit so they wouldn't wear out so soon. I am switching to heritage chickens now, no more hatchery chicks!!!
aldarita I am so sorry for what you and your chickens are going through,these are my 1st as well and I have only have them 7 months,and it is scary my 3 RSL started laying at 4 months old,truely I was not expecting any eggs until October,i hope this does not happen to mine,i feel your pain
kim10261. thank you very much for your kind words. I got very much attached to my girls because they were my first and because we went thru a lot together. Specially the one that had ovarian cancer, she grew on me from the very beginning, following me every where and she was the only one that would let me pick her up without a fuss. I took her to the vet because I knew she had egg peritonitis but I wanted a confirmation. Sure enough,after some tests the vet told me it was exactly what she had and even though she was still some how active and eating OK, I knew she would deteriorate and I did not want her to suffer. She and I had a "little talk" I thank her for the wonderful eggs she gave us and told her that i hope she had a good life. There was a necropsy done and it came back with ovarian cancer besides the EYP. It was very hard at the beginning but as they kept on getting sick and more died, it got not so bad. I cried for every one of them and they all have a piece of my heart. This is part of keeping chickens and now I know that it is inevitable so I have become stronger and come to appreciate each one of them every single day they spend with us.
I know you do,my heart is heavy and my eyes are full of tears,i am an animal rights activist so yeah this touched me,when I got my 6 babies in april they were my 1st,i knew absolutely nothing about raising chickens..illness nothing now that I have them I am learning some its hard to take...and pray my chickens do not get any of the bad things...I wish you well stay in touch
I am an ova vegetarian. I was vegan until my chickens started laying eggs. I only have Sweets that I have to worry about with the diseases. She lays monster eggs every day, and it scares me.