Question about my hens laying eggs

[chickenman526]

Ok i have 5 hens they are about 1 1/2 year old they lay like 6 to 12 eggs a week. i am feeding the laying pellet. And my question is. Shoudn't they be laying alot more eggs then this?

 

[debid]

Have they laid more in the past? Are you providing light in the coop to compensate for the shorter days of winter? Are some of them molting? There's nothing in laying pellets to make them lay, it's just balanced nutrition for hens with calcium added.

 

[chickenman526]

No. the most they have laid is back in summer in july when we got them they was laying 12 a week. and then when it got cold they went to laying abou 4 to 6 a week. and i am not providing them with light in the coop. what do you mean by molting? sorry i am new to this.

 

[JanetS]

I have 5 hens and I get 4 to 5 eggs a day. This is their first winter. Chickens usually slow down laying in winter. Mine haven't but I live in Florida so it doesn't get to cold here

 

[chickenman526]

Yea see I would think i would get 4 to 5 eggs a day too. if i am lucky i might get 2 and that on a warm day lol. I an't sure what i need to do. maybe feed them something different maybe not sure.

 

[TXchickmum]

Molting is the losing/regrowing of feathers.

-could be a number of things. Different breeds lay different amounts of eggs. Each of our 9 month-old Golden Comets lays an egg each morning - without fail! Our Old English Game Bantam and Japanese Bantam average about 8 to 9 eggs per week between the two of 'em. Our Wyandotte, about six months old, lays about 5 eggs per week. Our Australorp (same age as the Wyandotte) also lays about 4 to 5 per week. Our climate is pretty mild during the winter and we still receive a fair amount of daylight each day. The gals haven't stopped laying due to "winter". The Japanese Bantam did go broody a few months back. She did not lay for about four weeks during that time. (We just let her set air until she realized that the bare nest wasn't going to produce chicks. -resumed normal behavior/laying afterwards.)

 

[chickenman526]

ok what is the best ckichens for the most amount of eggs?

 

[debid]

You bought year-old hens in July? Hmmm... It could also be that they are older than you were told. As a hen ages, her production declines.

 

[chickenman526]

Yea the people we bought them from are real honest people we have known for years. So i am not sure. I kinda thought maybe i was doing something wrong. Was the reason they was not laying any more then they was. So if they are 1 1/2 year old they should be laying on a good day more then 2 eggs a day for five chickens? The breeds i have are Australorp, Rhode Island Red, Orpington, Star, and i am not sure about the 5th one i could post pics of all on here if that would help.

 

[debid]

Those should all be laying 4+ per week in prime season at that age. Any chance the eggs are being stolen? Are they confined or could they have hidden nests away from the coop?