elphabafalls
Songster
- Jul 27, 2020
- 108
- 158
- 123
First, I live in Oklahoma. It's about 87 deg here. We have 8 hens: 2 Black Sex Links, 1 Rhode Island Red, 1 Lav Orp, 4 Gold Sex Links.
About 3 and a half months ago, we moved our coop and flock to my mother's home while we got our home ready to sell. We bought a home with more property for the chickens, and about a week ago we moved them to the new house. They seem to be happy and hungry and very active, but their egg laying went from 8 the first day to 3 today - with a steady decrease over the last few days. Basically, it went from 8 to 6 to 5 to 4 to 3.
Their feed has 16% protein, and we grow our own mealworms to supplement. We also supplement their calcium with oyster shell and the occasional treat of plain yogurt. Since it's been hot (today is cooler than it has been), I've given them some watermelon or cucumber each day, but it comes out to about a quarter cup or less for each chicken for the whole day. The only other thing I'll give them is some scratch and oats - but all I do it scatter some in the grass for them to pick out while they're scratching around. Their feed, grass and whatever they dig up makes up well over 95% of their daily diet.
I've checked the entire yard multiple times to see if they're laying under a bush or something, but I've found nothing. They're quite accustomed to their laying boxes, so it doesn't seem likely that they'd suddenly start dropping eggs everywhere but their boxes. They're not molting. I'd assume it's just the move that's slowing their egg production except that it started high and got lower instead of dropping right after the move. Is this normal?
About 3 and a half months ago, we moved our coop and flock to my mother's home while we got our home ready to sell. We bought a home with more property for the chickens, and about a week ago we moved them to the new house. They seem to be happy and hungry and very active, but their egg laying went from 8 the first day to 3 today - with a steady decrease over the last few days. Basically, it went from 8 to 6 to 5 to 4 to 3.
Their feed has 16% protein, and we grow our own mealworms to supplement. We also supplement their calcium with oyster shell and the occasional treat of plain yogurt. Since it's been hot (today is cooler than it has been), I've given them some watermelon or cucumber each day, but it comes out to about a quarter cup or less for each chicken for the whole day. The only other thing I'll give them is some scratch and oats - but all I do it scatter some in the grass for them to pick out while they're scratching around. Their feed, grass and whatever they dig up makes up well over 95% of their daily diet.
I've checked the entire yard multiple times to see if they're laying under a bush or something, but I've found nothing. They're quite accustomed to their laying boxes, so it doesn't seem likely that they'd suddenly start dropping eggs everywhere but their boxes. They're not molting. I'd assume it's just the move that's slowing their egg production except that it started high and got lower instead of dropping right after the move. Is this normal?
