Protein & egg laying

[stephhassler]

From reading another post I learned that treats may not be a good idea for those of us waiting for first eggs. My newest girls are 25 weeks (assorted - columbian wyandotte, RIR, BR, dark cornish, light and buff bramha, among others). They are getting layer feed, but I also give them kitchen scraps and we feed grapes occasionally as treats. My first set of girls were leghorns who started laying right at 20 weeks and didn't slow down until they were 2 yrs old. So, the wait for these newest girls has been difficult. With the leghorns slowing down, we got down to 1 egg yesterday and I was forced to buy store eggs! I haven't bought store eggs for 2 years!

Anyway, perhaps the kitchen scraps are diluting the protein of the layer feed. Suggestions on the other post were hog finisher and dry cat food. I don't know what hog finisher is, but I assume I could find it at the feed store? Do the chickens like it - will they eat it? As for cat food - not sure about the protein in that. When it comes to buying dog food for my puppy, it is dang hard to find good dog food with real protein in it. Wouldn't cat food be the same? I don't know, never owned a cat.

Any other thoughts on protein - other than steak as I refuse to feed the girls sirloin simply to encourage egg laying!

 

[cnj-tx50]

Igive mine a hadfull of BOSS in the late afternoons. But, I have decided that they will lay when they are good and ready. I got seven eggs to day out of 26. And mine are between 20 and 32 weeks. So oof them look and act like they have been ready to for a month now and no eggs!!! So I think the longer I have to wait the better the eggs are going to taste!!

 

[twentynine]

How many chickens?

How much kitchen scrap?

10-15-20-25 chickens ---- 1/2 gallon of kitchen scarps would not be a problem.

Yes! Protien consumed is directly connected to egg production. However that being said, this time of year it could be other factors, short days, molting, age, and climate.

I feed ALL the kitchen scraps we generate to my chickens, averages maybe two or three good handfulls a day to ten chickens. Along with that their regular diet consist of Purena Layena crumbles and Purena Flock raiser 16% and 20% protien each. Mixed in a ration of 50/50 totaling about 1 and 1/2 liters. They also recieve maybe 1/2 oz of crushed oyster shell mixed in with the feed per day. 1 cup of cracked corn 1/2 in AM, 1/2 in PM. This is all supplemented with fresh grown rape and turnip greens grown specificly for the chickens, they consume a loosly filled 5 gallon bucket of this per day. All of this for 9 hens and 1 rooster. Also my run is subdivided into 3 equal 200 sq ft areas and rye grass, turnip, clover and bahia are planted for them to eat, they are rotated maybe once every two weeks to a new area, or when the current area is completely depleted.

My chickens also get supplemental lighting from 3AM until day break, thus giving them close to 14 hrs of light per day.

Presently I am getting between 5 and 7 eggs a day. On the 24th of Nov. they will be 6 months old. Breeds, black sex link, production reds, barred rock, light brahma with a sicilian buttercup rooster.