What to Expect with Hybrid Layers in 3rd Year

[Thepoopsmiths]

Hello All,

We have had poultry for many years, but never production-oriented hybrid layers (blue gem, novagen, copper dominant, golden sex link, etc) for more than 2 years.

This is because we mostly kept ducks, meat chickens, turkeys, or the more "heritage" breeds of chickens. When we did buy hybrid chickens more recently, we ended up having to cull the entire flock due to avian flu - before they got to 2 years old (July 2022).

Anyway, what I am hoping more experienced hybrid chicken keepers will share with us, is how they have approached hybrids in their 3rd year.

First, what should I expect?
Do they just almost completely stop laying? Do most of them experience reproductive problems (egg bound, etc) and need to be culled for welfare reasons? Is their feed conversion WORSE than a standard chicken in their 3rd year? Do they disappear, taken by a secret society wishing to conceal their 3rd year production? Seriously, finding info online about egg production in their third year is ridiculous!

Second, what is your approach (sharing the scale of your operation would be helpful to understand your context)?
Do you use nest traps and cull anyone who isn't producing enough? Do their legs or combs reliably change color if they are laying in their 3rd year, or are they all kinda bleached? Do you let them go a full 3rd year and THEN cull as a rule? Did you try letting them go another year at one point, and will never try that again due to a bad outcome? etc?

Thank you to anyone who might pass on some hybrid chicken wisdom!

Rachel

 

[U_Stormcrow]

So, flock below. (see sig). I'm trying to replace my Hybrid layers (Comets - insert any RSL prodiuction variety here) with a lower production mutt better suited to my grounds and management, but still have my original Comets and my "Rainbows" (Hoover Hatchery - all of mine looked like 1/2# heavier RSL with some NHR and maybe some distant Orp in their background, contra their advertising - they look like bird at bottom front left in their photo, if a little more upright).

Your expectations are thus: They are more prone to reproductive problems, but by no means will all of them develop reproductive problems on their third birthday. They just do so at much higher rate than many less specialized breeds. Getting hard numbers on it is not something I've seen published, but my impression is that the rate is several times to many times more frequent than other birds, but not a guarantee.

Their rate of lay drops again. Expectations (and I've seen some published data on this) is about a 15% drop the first year into the second. Second year into the third is between 15-25%. What does that mean in raw numbers? Lets say your Comet lays 300 eggs its first production year. That's about 255 the second year - still impressive. Third year? Expectations are 190 - 215. Effectively, 2 newly productive Comets lay like 3 three-year olds. At that point, feed efficiency isn't even up for discussion.

I can also say, from experience, that the Comets start laying later each spring (typical of any chicken, I understand). Mine produce my darkest eggs. My Brahma (don't ask), my SLW (again, don't ask), and my mutts all produce a mostly cream/tan egg of varying shades (something I've been selecting for}, while the Comets are a more medium to light brown - but not something you would mistake for tan. I believe I've harvested three of them in the last 5 days, which is roughly 72 eggs. Yes, they are outnumbered (by far), but it also means my three "production layers" have only produced three eggs betweeen themselves in five days. My suspicion is that one has started laying, and the other two have not yet.

and because you asked, my culling project.

I plan to remove all the original birds this year, will be mutts from here on out until/unless i need to bring in new genetics.

{My experience only - others of alrger production red flocks and longer at the hobby may/likely do have differing experience, The above is anecdote, not data.}

 

[Thepoopsmiths]

So, flock below. (see sig). I'm trying to replace my Hybrid layers (Comets - insert any RSL prodiuction variety here) with a lower production mutt better suited to my grounds and management, but still have my original Comets and my "Rainbows" (Hoover Hatchery - all of mine looked like 1/2# heavier RSL with some NHR and maybe some distant Orp in their background, contra their advertising - they look like bird at bottom front left in their photo, if a little more upright).

Your expectations are thus: They are more prone to reproductive problems, but by no means will all of them develop reproductive problems on their third birthday. They just do so at much higher rate than many less specialized breeds. Getting hard numbers on it is not something I've seen published, but my impression is that the rate is several times to many times more frequent than other birds, but not a guarantee.

Their rate of lay drops again. Expectations (and I've seen some published data on this) is about a 15% drop the first year into the second. Second year into the third is between 15-25%. What does that mean in raw numbers? Lets say your Comet lays 300 eggs its first production year. That's about 255 the second year - still impressive. Third year? Expectations are 190 - 215. Effectively, 2 newly productive Comets lay like 3 three-year olds. At that point, feed efficiency isn't even up for discussion.

I can also say, from experience, that the Comets start laying later each spring (typical of any chicken, I understand). Mine produce my darkest eggs. My Brahma (don't ask), my SLW (again, don't ask), and my mutts all produce a mostly cream/tan egg of varying shades (something I've been selecting for}, while the Comets are a more medium to light brown - but not something you would mistake for tan. I believe I've harvested three of them in the last 5 days, which is roughly 72 eggs. Yes, they are outnumbered (by far), but it also means my three "production layers" have only produced three eggs betweeen themselves in five days. My suspicion is that one has started laying, and the other two have not yet.

and because you asked, my culling project.

I plan to remove all the original birds this year, will be mutts from here on out until/unless i need to bring in new genetics.

{My experience only - others of alrger production red flocks and longer at the hobby may/likely do have differing experience, The above is anecdote, not data.}

This is super helpful. Thank you so much for sharing your perspective and experience!

 

[rockethoe]

We keep our sexlinks. Till death do depart.

In their third year their production drops 15-20% as mentioned above. In their fourth year they cull themselves mostly. They aren’t bred for a long life. We have yet to have any with reproduction problems, they seemingly die of “old age”. We euthanise them in the foutlrth year as soon as they look to be on their way out.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I only have one sexlink for laying, Lady. She's 4(?) now, and lays in spurts where it's almost every day, before going on breaks for a week or two. She was an impulse buy (I needed 6 chicks, and they only had a few breeds to pick from), but she is a great bird