The Middle Tennessee Thread

[DMRippy]

Hey all...it's been awhile since I have joined the conversation......lots of crazy issues at home....

Anyway, I have a problem... It's been 3 weeks since we have had a single egg... I have 20 chickens and 18 should be laying.... But we haven't had an egg show up. We have checked every nook and cranny in the yard and coop and nothin... Ant ideas as to what may be the cause??? They don't look like they are molting..so we just aren't sure...

Thanks

It is the lack of light.... moulting or not they will stop or slow way down this time of year. The only ones that would be laying now are ones that JUST started to lay.

 

[wife89]

See that's just it... I have 16 7 month olds. Shouldn't they be laying? We had 2 that were but everyone has stopped or not started at all.... We have a light on in the coop..

 

[Lots A Cluckin]

Mine are still laying..I have 14 six month old's four or five are still not laying (Polish, silkies) and twenty-two 7 month old's 18 are bantams I think they are all laying. That is a total of 36 hens with four or five not at the age of laying and 2 broody's I still get 20-23 eggs per day, on average I get 10 large eggs from my RSL's RIR's and EE's 6 pullet eggs form my 6 month old's that are just starting to lay and 7 bantam eggs...So I have no idea why you aren't getting any eggs as yours as your are they should lay right through the winter no problem...if possible keep them in-closed for a few days if they are free raged they are most like hiding them somewhere...they can find really good spots to hide them.

 

[Cinny]

I have 3 layers 6 months old....too young to molt, and only one still lays. I've been told it's the colder weather, who know, I've also found they do exactly what they want to do and nothing else....LOL

 

[CarolJ]

All 11 of my Rhodebar eggs hatched - my first 100% hatch!

These were from my olive-colored Rhodebar eggs. I was hoping they'd be clearly autosexing - like Rhodebar eggs should be - but they're not. Looking closely, I can see differences. Four are lighter than the other seven - and those other seven have more distinguishable chipmunk stripes. One of the lighter ones has a white spot on its head. What do you think - do they look autosexing to you? They sure don't have the obvious, no-doubt-about-it type of autosexing that Rhodebars should have. I'm going to sell them on Rare Breed Auctions - with full disclosure about the fact that Greenfire sold the parent stock to me as "purebred" Rhodebars (at $99 per female chick) - and yet they are laying olive and green eggs - a definite indication that they aren't purebred after all. Still, they might make great chicks for someone who want a breeding program to develop olive-egg laying Rhodebars. I guess there would be a way to improve/increase the autosexing trait while maintaining the olive eggs. I don't know - that's not my interest - but someone somewhere is probably interested in that! I would love to have them - just don't know enough about genetics and don't have the space to start something like that.

 

[DMRippy]

Carol are you going to sell your parent stock? I personally would not keep them after this.

 

[CarolJ]

Donna - I haven't decided. I will probably put the hens with my layer flock and sell the rooster. Since the chicks are kinda-sorta auto-sexing possibly (LOL!) I hope I can sell these 11 chicks fairly easily. I just put them on Rare Breed Auctions. I don't plan to incubate any more of their eggs, though. I have two of the green eggs in the incubator now - due to hatch next week. These 11 chicks came from the olive eggs. I will write Greenfire one more time and ask for a refund. I don't hold out much hope for that, though. Lots of people think Greenfire is wonderful - but I've been totally unimpressed with them (to put it mildly).

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

I have a question.

What is the ideal size for roost pole?

I like using a 2x4 turned so the wide side is up. Even my old, heavy girls can balance on that, plus in the winter they can get their toes up under them to stay warm. I don't ever worry about frostbite on their toes that way. Plus 2x4s are easy. Just sand it a little and cut to length.

 

[ChickenQueen12]

This is my Silkie/ Silver Seabright cross chick its 4 days old. It is solid black with a yellow face. The Silkie mom is buff and bearded. The chick has feathered feet it is too cute!!!! Sorry they are soo blurry it is soo fast i could hardly get a pic of it lol..

 

[CarolJ]

As my chicks dried and fluffed up more, I noticed that the differences were more obvious. Look at these two newer photos.

I think these are 4 boys


And these are 7 girls . . . I hope


I think they might be auto-sexing after all. Not as obvious as they should be. There are four with definite white on their heads - and the other seven have varying shades of chipmunk stripes - some more obvious than others. They're up for sale already - but I'm going to ask whoever buys them to let me know if this sexing turned out to be accurate.