Not to hijack the thread, but I have a related question I've been meaning to ask but keep forgetting about. I still haven't decided on this issue of supplemental lighting. I like the idea of the chickens getting a "break," but does it REALLY benefit them long term? I guess the only way anyone could tell me this for sure was if they had raised some chickens with light and some without.... But if anyone happens to know, does it extend their lives/productivity or some other health benefit? I plan on culling hens when their production drops drastically, so would this benefit me at all?
The commercial operations force their hens to molt once as adults. They have specially bred chickens for their operations, so there are some differences. One big benefit is that the eggs get bigger after the first adult molt. They get more money for Grade A Large than Grade A Small. After a long time without a molt, productivity does drop some and you can have some quality problems. I don't remember what all the quality problems are. One for brown eggs is that the egg shells can get very pale. That probably wopuld not bother you, but I'm pretty sure here are other quality problems. I'm talking about over a year of laying, not just a few months.
After the first adult molt, productivity does not drop. Some people say the productivity goes up, but I get great productivity from my pullets that have not had an adult molt. I'm not convinced that the number of eggs laid actually goes up, but the size does. After each adult molt after the first, the number of eggs laid drops by about 15% to 20%. What does that translate to? If they were laying 5 to 6 eggs a week, they drop to maybe 4 or 5. That's still quite a few eggs. The next molt, they may drop down to 3 or 4. That gets noticable, especially if you are buying all their feed. If they free range and find their own food, maybe that isn't too bad.
Also, and I know this will be hard to answer, but for those who don't use lights how much does your egg production drop? My whole intention behind buying chickens was to not have to buy eggs anymore, even in winter. So I have 20 hens, with the hope that they will lay enough for us even when production is low, and that we can sell/give away the extras at peak. We use a ridiculous number of eggs each week- at least 2 dozen. Do you think I would get 18(a minimum I would be able to deal with...)-24 eggs a week from 20 hens without supplemental light? I have 4 barred rocks, 6 EE's, 6 red stars (who aren't laying yet, but should start sometime this fall), three bantams (although one might be a rooster... still not sure...), and one lemon orphington.
When my adult hens molt, they quit laying. Some people say they get a few, but it is very few. They use the protein they are eating to grow feathers, not lay eggs. All of them may not molt at exactly the same time, but the molt can last from two to five months, depending on the individual chicken. I'll give you a couple of links that have drawings and discuss it in detail.
I always have some pullets that have just started to lay when Fall rolls around. Most of these do not molt the first Fall/Winter so they continue to lay all winter. I may not get an egg a day from them in the worst weather, but they lay pretty well. It is kind of breed dependent too. These are the ones that the eggs get real pale before the next winter rolls around.
One problem you might have is that the ones that have not started to lay may not start to lay until the days get longer. But then, they might. I can't tell you for sure. Due to a fairly late broody, I have a few that should start laying around Thanksgiving. I'll have more experience with this next year.
I know I have not answered your questions with a direct yes or no, but maybe this will help.
Mississippi State describes molting
http://msucares.com/poultry/management/poultry_feathers.html
Kansas State feather loss
http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/library/lvstk2/mf2308.pdf
The commercial operations force their hens to molt once as adults. They have specially bred chickens for their operations, so there are some differences. One big benefit is that the eggs get bigger after the first adult molt. They get more money for Grade A Large than Grade A Small. After a long time without a molt, productivity does drop some and you can have some quality problems. I don't remember what all the quality problems are. One for brown eggs is that the egg shells can get very pale. That probably wopuld not bother you, but I'm pretty sure here are other quality problems. I'm talking about over a year of laying, not just a few months.
After the first adult molt, productivity does not drop. Some people say the productivity goes up, but I get great productivity from my pullets that have not had an adult molt. I'm not convinced that the number of eggs laid actually goes up, but the size does. After each adult molt after the first, the number of eggs laid drops by about 15% to 20%. What does that translate to? If they were laying 5 to 6 eggs a week, they drop to maybe 4 or 5. That's still quite a few eggs. The next molt, they may drop down to 3 or 4. That gets noticable, especially if you are buying all their feed. If they free range and find their own food, maybe that isn't too bad.
Also, and I know this will be hard to answer, but for those who don't use lights how much does your egg production drop? My whole intention behind buying chickens was to not have to buy eggs anymore, even in winter. So I have 20 hens, with the hope that they will lay enough for us even when production is low, and that we can sell/give away the extras at peak. We use a ridiculous number of eggs each week- at least 2 dozen. Do you think I would get 18(a minimum I would be able to deal with...)-24 eggs a week from 20 hens without supplemental light? I have 4 barred rocks, 6 EE's, 6 red stars (who aren't laying yet, but should start sometime this fall), three bantams (although one might be a rooster... still not sure...), and one lemon orphington.
When my adult hens molt, they quit laying. Some people say they get a few, but it is very few. They use the protein they are eating to grow feathers, not lay eggs. All of them may not molt at exactly the same time, but the molt can last from two to five months, depending on the individual chicken. I'll give you a couple of links that have drawings and discuss it in detail.
I always have some pullets that have just started to lay when Fall rolls around. Most of these do not molt the first Fall/Winter so they continue to lay all winter. I may not get an egg a day from them in the worst weather, but they lay pretty well. It is kind of breed dependent too. These are the ones that the eggs get real pale before the next winter rolls around.
One problem you might have is that the ones that have not started to lay may not start to lay until the days get longer. But then, they might. I can't tell you for sure. Due to a fairly late broody, I have a few that should start laying around Thanksgiving. I'll have more experience with this next year.
I know I have not answered your questions with a direct yes or no, but maybe this will help.
Mississippi State describes molting
http://msucares.com/poultry/management/poultry_feathers.html
Kansas State feather loss
http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/library/lvstk2/mf2308.pdf
