Many hens Few eggs

[16Chickens Keeper]

I am mad my 16 hens
4 of which are 2 1/2 yrs old
2 Mixes
1 RIR
1 EE
( i know my mixes and rir lay inconsistently EE lay every other day)
9 1 1/2 yr old hens
3 Cinnmon Queen
3 RIR
3 Barred Rocks
( I expect them to lay almost daily )
2 1 yr old hens
EE used to lay an egg everyday
Unknown breed
Also personnaly mad at her have only seen maybe 2 or 3 eggs from her

Anyway a week a go we went from 9 - 12 eggs a day to now a meesley 2-5 eggs the only thing I can think of is our weather which has been awfull constant rain and that caused my run to become muddy smelly and full of flies which I have tried to combat by cleaning out there whole run putting fly traps in , put new bedding in there laying boxes and the inside of the coop.

They eat layer pellets mixed with scratch grain from bomgaars, leftover food and whatever they can free range and now theve stopped almost laying all togheter I just can believe out of 16 hens I only get 3-5 eggs

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Production is dropping this time of year. No hen can lay an egg a day all year. Best production is seen during the first season, and in early spring, than production drops yearly.

Layer has 16% protein, it's the daily minimum requirements. Feeding scratch and extras dilutes your daily protein which will affect production since eggs are protein. If you feed layer it should be the sole ration. Otherwise switch to something with a higher protein, 18-20% if you want to add stuff in to maximize production.

Your hens will continue to lay less. You need to add replacements yearly if you want a steady supply of eggs.

 

[16Chickens Keeper]

I undestand that as hrns age they lay less and we are putting in more "new blood" ( 5 ISA brown, 4 Black sex-link, an Austalorp) Also, how can I at least encourage them to lay more ( also can I mix in meat bird feed because it has more protein)

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

You can switch to a non medicated starter grower, or an All Flock, or even the meat bird. You don't need to feed a layer. Make sure to offer free choice oyster shells for the calcium needs.

 

[Acre4Me]

Give them some higher protein feed. As mentioned above, grower, all-flock, or meat bird feed are some choices. When we give “treats”, often it is wet feed-made to a consistency of thick batter, with a few things mixed in. Sometimes we add re-hydrated alfalfa cubes (like would be fed to a horse), or scrambled and cooked eggs, maybe some seeds sprinkled on. Alfalfa is 16%protein, so it does not dilute the protein. They love their wet feed!

Lay off on the scratch or only give a small amount when you are getting them to come back in after free-ranging.

Good luck!

 

[16Chickens Keeper]

Ok so I can switch to chick starter and/ or meat bird feed, only question will it cause them to gain weight with the meat bird feed, also would fermenting their current feed help

 

[Acre4Me]

Ok so I can switch to chick starter and/ or meat bird feed, only question will it cause them to gain weight with the meat bird feed, also would fermenting their current feed help

No, it should not cause them to gain weight specifically. You can ferment it, if you want. One benefit of fermented feed is less waste -can also be achieved with just weeding it down (skip the fermentation time). I’ve never done FF, because I would potentially forget about it, no great place to put it and it creates more things to wash, so I’ve never pursued FF.

One other thing: light. Chickens should get 14 hours light a day. Are they getting this amount of light?

Good luck! I hope you get eggs soon!

 

[16Chickens Keeper]

I dont think so maybe less they get up at 7-8 am and go in at 6-7 pm

 

[aart]

Also personnaly mad at her

Well, that's just silly....being mad won't help.

Especially at the EE, if it's the same one as this one:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/vent-gleet.1317376/

caused my run to become muddy smelly and full of flies

What kind of bedding in the run?
Pics, please.

whatever they can free range

Are you sure they might not be laying out in their range area?

Here's a way to tell....
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/

...also please let us know....
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, (laptop version shown), then it's always there!

 

[Acre4Me]

I dont think so maybe less they get up at 7-8 am and go in at 6-7 pm

Does their coop allow natural light to enter? Is there, for example, a window?

If they are not getting enough light, that will also affect their laying. In the winter, during naturally short days, chickens will reduce their production or stop altogether. So, if you want them to keep laying - provide artificial light. A single 60watt build (or equivalent) usually will be fine - enough light that you could read the newspaper in the coop, for example. When a light is put on a timer, then it automatically turns on and off to give the needed light.

We have electric in our coop (thanks to mice chewing wires in the barn, we had to get an electrician in to re-wire, so added the coop to that job since it is right behind the barn). We have a single bulb, and an outdoor rated timer. In winter we have it come on in the morning for a few hours, then in the later afternoon for a few hours, so that the lightbulb light and the natural daylight will equal 14-15 hours of light a day.

Some people opt to not provide artificial light, to give the birds a break. However, they get a natural break when they molt. If you are providing adequate nutrition, then there is no detriment to the chicken to add light for laying. Just don't keep the light on 24/7, as they do need a period of darkness each day.