Moulting and no eggs

[BDutch]

Thanks Aart

@Craigboy53 , I wonder why you're 1 ½ year old hens stopped laying. They are still young and should lay much more eggs. If it where my hens I would like to know what the problem was.
If the reason is not solved, youre new layers may become poor layers too. Maybe check on mite or other parasites, give them enough space to avoid stress, provide good food ...

 

[Craigboy53]

Thanks Aart

@Craigboy53 , I wonder why you're 1 ½ year old hens stopped laying. They are still young and should lay much more eggs. If it where my hens I would like to know what the problem was.
If the reason is not solved, youre new layers may become poor layers too. Maybe check on mite or other parasites, give them enough space to avoid stress, provide good food ...

Yep, we are all wondering that. They had 36 square feet in the coop (3 chickens), never went below -1 C in the winter, has good ventilation. They get Purina feed, chick starter, then growth, then layer, so I don’t think it’s the food. Plenty of fresh water changed daily, heated in winter. Coop is thoroughly dusted with DE, their dust bath has DE mixed in, and I put DE in the food for parasites. I’ve followed the suggestions my friends at BC have made, but no eggs. The girls were fat and healthy, shiny feathers, good combs, feet were good. Maybe I treated them too well, and they think they don’t have to work for a living.
The best suggestion in my mind was that it was the timing that was poor. They were born mid-August, and it was suggested that the timing, combined with mould, resulted in no eggs.
In the end it has worked out well. The three Orpingtons are now part of a larger flock, so we will see what happens. We are excited about the new chicks, and have great hopes. Fingers are crossed...

 

[BDutch]

The girls were fat

This might have been the problem. Fat chickens don’t lay well.

 

[Folly's place]

It's especially easy to fatten Orphingtons, and I wonder how many extras they were eating out there.
Mary

 

[Craigboy53]

It's especially easy to fatten Orphingtons, and I wonder how many extras they were eating out there.
Mary

We would give them a handful of scratch every 5-6 days, and put dandelion leaves, and plantain leaves in for greens. They loved them. Then whatever they foraged when they were out for 1-2 hours in the afternoon. They had constant access to food in the coop. They would share a handful of mealworms as a reward for returning to the coop.
However, it is a sad day here. Last night, something, a mink I think from the evidence, broke into the coop, killed all four of the new chicks, leaving three dead and stealing one. We are stunned and sad. I had 1/2” hardware cloth on all sides, underneath (buried), on top, and it was all secure. Took a while to figure out how he got in. The brooder box hangs off one side of the coop. The floor of the brooder box was a press fit into the bottom, which was about 8” off the ground. He got under the brooder, ripped off the bubble foil insulation, and pushed the bottom up enough to get in. Two chicks were bitten around the necks, one decapitated (head not found), and he took the last one with him for a midnight snack.
I’ve screwed down the brooder floor, and will be putting hardware cloth under it as a second layer.
Now we have to find replacements. We only had them a week, and we just getting them tamed.
i just have to remember that they are livestock, and there are predators, and to paraphrase a popular saying...’stuff happens’.

 

[Folly's place]

I'm so sorry!
If there's a way, some critter will find it, miserable!
Mary

 

[BDutch]

@Craigboy53 Sorry for all youre losses. I know foxes do surplus killings. But didn’t know minks do surplus killings too.

 

[aart]

I know foxes do surplus killings. But didn’t know minks do surplus killings too.

Most predators will kill as many as possible then cache the 'extras' for later feeding.

 

[Craigboy53]

@Craigboy53 Sorry for all youre losses. I know foxes do surplus killings. But didn’t know minks do surplus killings too.

Thanks, BDutch. The spot it got in was no more than 2” square, after it pushed up the floor board. Board is now secure, and has hardware cloth 1/2” protecting it. I have seen a mink around the property, but first time this far from the river (150 metres). Guess the chicks smelled good.
We are picking up 2 white leghorns and two easter eggers this morning. All the Azure Blues were gone, but Easter eggers will do.

 

[Craigboy53]

We are picking up 2 white leghorns and two easter eggers this morning. All the Azure Blues were gone, but Easter eggers will do.

we ended up with two white leghorns, one Easter egger, and a mystery bird. If I got it right, it is a Rumpless EE, which means it has a lot of Arucana (sp?) in her. They had named her Golem, for reasons which will become clear when you look at her pic! . They are seven weeks old.
My question for today is about supplemental lighting. Given their age, should I give them supplemental lighting this fall/winter so they will begin to lay, or should I leave it off for them to grow strong to start laying in the spring? There seems to be mixed opinions on this, so I would appreciate your thoughts!