My Girlz have gone on holiday

[Grenadianexpat]

My young ladies which are about a year old have mostly gone on strike.

Egg production is down at least 50%.

They are just common breed "layers", I do try to stop them getting an inferiority comlpex, but that is what they are.

They seem to have dropped their appetite for the regular layer feed, but go ballistic if they see me walking up to the coup with anything that looks like it may be food. They also woof it down if it is any kind of treat.

In other threads I see the laying cycle being much longer, so I wonder what may have reduced their laying rate.

They live in the tropics, so do not have to contend with lower temperatures, or shorter days.

I would like to get them back on track as SWMBO has plans for the chopping board I would like to thwart.

They went from smallish eggs to mostly large eggs, and now fewer eggs.

Surely a regular 86C wouldn't shorten their laying cycle.

HELP please, I can hear the machete being sharpened while I type

 

[CMV]

86 degrees C? Doesn't that equal 186 degrees F?

Are they molting? Have you done a bug check on them lately? If neither of those apply then I am at a loss. I have no idea why they would be not laying.

Sorry I can't be more help. Good luck figuring out what's up.

 

[Grenadianexpat]

Quote:
Oops, I see you spotted my deliberate mistake. Coming from Britain we tend to use Celsius, but here in Grenada we still use Fahrenheit, So I thought I would mix and match....

We don't see anything wrong or different about them other than SWYMBO says they are not too bothered about the Layer food any more. I now try to give them more bananas, PawPaw, and Avocado, to make them feel loved.

We have also started to reintroduce a bit of Grower feed as they go bananas... sorry about the pun .... which may not be best for the egg laying process, but if they enjoy it, a bit now and them shouldn't hurt them surely.

Ignorance is bliss, what should we be looking for in the way of BUGS....

 

[CMV]

http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html

That's a link to bug ID.

I'd cut out the treats and encourage them to eat the layer pellets. Treats are great for special occasions, but layer pellets give chickens the balanced diet they need for proper egg production. By feeding a diet high in fruit you are limiting their intake of protein and calcium, which are both necessary for egg production. They may love the fruit, but they will stop laying because they are not getting the nutritional requirements for proper egg production.

Good luck.

 

[Grenadianexpat]

Quote:
Thanks for the info, all of which is interesting.

One Birds treat is another birds staple diet.... The regular Yard Fowl who run free during the day, and obligingly (most of the time) roost in the coup provided get the fruit and other treats as and when the fruit drops.

The layers just have to watch and grit their beaks with envy....

I shall examine the birds for signs of mite lice infestation. The recommendation to use Sevin is a bit scary, as even though we may protect them by enclosure in a bag from dust while they have their dust bath, I would be concerned that they ingest the bug killer when they preen.

Hey Ho.

 

[CMV]

I don't actually use Sevin dust because it is so toxic. I use a topical product called Eprinex which I am not sure is available to you where you are at. You could also use Permethrin dust, which is readily available at most garden centers. I hate dusting birds, so I prefer to use the topical products where you drop a few drops of a liquid on the bird and it is done. Dusting is most people's preference. Either one will work.