Southern NY, Dutchess county and below

[Joe Rampata]

Some egg production in some birds drops off after two years of age.
On the other hand i have had hens produce eggs for five years or more.

 

[ChickenAl]

Thanks so much for your posting, Al.   Same story here.   Layed through the winter for a couple of years, then slowed, and now almost nuttin'  .     Are you going to get some younger chickens to replenish your breakfast needs?   I just hate having to buy eggs.   It feels so weird not knowing the hen that produced them.

I don't know if I have the energy to raise chickens again. I agree that buying eggs are not the same as having those from your own hens. Hoping there will be a few eggs here and there when the days grow longer.

 

[ChickenAl]

Some egg production in some birds drops off after two years of age.
On the other hand i have had hens produce eggs for five years or more.

That's correct. Hens that are bred for production usually will produce heavily for the first two years then fall off dramatically by the third year. A hen is born with all the eggs it will ever have, and the ones that produce less consistently when young will still produce in older age.

 

[stoopid]

I had to buy eggs for the first time in years to bake christmas goodies.
UGH

 

[RubyNala97]

My eight hens are all looking beautiful and fluffy with their new feathers all bright and full.  They are alert, active, and busy dawn to dusk.  Come to me the minute they hear me open the back door and/or see me walk across the yard.   BUT THEY'VE GIVEN ME ONLY ABOUT FIVE EGGS IN THE PAST THREE MONTHS!!  And that's five eggs total.   (Not five from each of them.)    All those five eggs were from my EasterEgger called Smoke.     There was one other egg, one day last week, a small miniature effort, from one of the other girls.  No yolk, I tossed it.

Purina Layena Plus Omega as their always available daily food, plus free range every day with lots of young grass to enjoy and dirt to scratch around in and dust bathe in, treats of dried meal worms, black oil sunflower seeds, and Farmer's Ultra Kibble,  as well as Seabuck7 in one waterbowl, and AppleCiderVinegar in the other water bowl.    But still some mild molting going on and almost NO EGGS.

Hoping the increasing daylight will make a difference and soon.

We live in hope.

Hope you all are fine and dandy.

-Carolyn in Freeport

I bought a couple hens a few weeks ago and was starting to get concerned because I had not gotten any eggs. They are currently indoor with light on till around 7:30pm. (And they are spoiled with lots of good food). So a friend told me to try buttermilk and in 2 days I would have an egg. Well I didn't have buttermilk but I gave them a dish of yogurt and I swear in two days they started laying. This was 3 days ago and I've gotten a egg a day since. Maybe just coincidence but it might be worth a try!

 

[JerseyHen]

HiCarolyn, it most likely is the length of daylight. Mine layed through the winter for two years, then they slowed down to summer only. At almost five years old I haven't seen an egg since the end of summer, and those were on a very sporadic basis.

Haven't been on here in a while and hope everyone is doing well.

Al!!!!! So good to see you in here. I hope all is well on your side of the river!

 

[lalany]

I woke up this morning to shovel out the hens and immediately realized Lemon, our white leg horn was dead. When I removed her from the coop, I saw what looks like her insides coming out her vent. My husband and I checked on the chickens several times during the blizzard and they were fine. He said she was alive at 4pm when he went out to change the water. He said she was sitting in the egg box, All the other girls seem fine. Any opinions about what could have happened? She's only about 2 1/2 years old.
Also, what have you done with your chickens after they pass? We consider them family pets and my heart breaks to think of putting her in the garbage pail. The ground is too frozen to bury her in the yard.
This is my first flock of chickens, so chicken illness and death is new to me.

 

[lalany]

I also should add that when I found Lemon she was not in the nesting box, but the box had some blood and an egg that looked like a deflated balloon.

 

[ChickenAl]

I also should add that when I found Lemon she was not in the nesting box, but the box had some blood and an egg that looked like a deflated balloon.

I could be wrong, but it sounds like prolapse. I think that is where the reproductive organs come out. There probably is nothing you could have done to prevent it. I had lost four hens in the past two years and I had not been able to figure out why. Only the last day on two of the hens did they look like they were lethargic. Chickens will hide their illnesses so as not to look weak, and by the time they show symptoms it is usually too late.

 

[JerseyHen]

I agree with Al. As far as disposal goes, that is a very personal thing (and potential legal thing). There may be local rules against disposing of an animal carcass in the trash. You could take her to a vet for disposal. I am not sure what they would charge, but it might be the best option, given that she was a pet.