Why Aren't My Chickens Laying? Here Are Your Answers!

[spatula]

Chooks refused to go into their coop tonight. Roosted in a random spot near our front door.... I will contact some stores tomorrow to get some supplies...

 

[Cass]

Chooks refused to go into their coop tonight. Roosted in a random spot near our front door.... I will contact some stores tomorrow to get some supplies...

Good luck getting rid of bugs. It's not hard, just takes time.

 

[spatula]

Wiped the ******** out. Relocated coop. Dusted chooks. Cross fingers!!!

 

[Cass]

Wiped the ******** out. Relocated coop. Dusted chooks. Cross fingers!!!

crossing my fingers with you. Hope they start laying again soon. But do give them 2 weeks to adjust. And you might want to dust them again in 7 days to kill the bugs that hatch for eggs laid on chicken's feathers.

 

[spatula]

Thanks Cass! Success! Dusted chooks again about 9 days after original dusting. About another 10 days and I got one egg and the next day and now getting two eggs a day from 3 chooks. The one chook that isn't laying again yet keeps skitzing out and trying to pick a fight with one of the other chooks. They keep having words but no physical damage done yet...

 

[spatula]

crossing my fingers with you.  Hope they start laying again soon.  But do give them 2 weeks to adjust.  And you might want to dust them again in 7 days to kill the bugs that hatch for eggs laid on chicken's feathers.

 

[lostinthemusic]

I brought home 2 Buff Orpington hens from a swap meet last Saturday, but I have no idea how old these beautiful girls are. They are bigger than my 10 month old RIRs, and they are very top-heavy. They also have scaly legs. I've been treating them (and the coop) for scaly leg mites. I'm also suspecting that these girls were kept caged, because they seem to have no idea how to free-range. They just kind of lay around together outside while my RIRs are pecking and scratching to their hearts' content. Is there any way to tell if these girls are too old or too young to lay eggs?

 

[Cass]

I brought home 2 Buff Orpington hens from a swap meet last Saturday, but I have no idea how old these beautiful girls are. They are bigger than my 10 month old RIRs, and they are very top-heavy. They also have scaly legs. I've been treating them (and the coop) for scaly leg mites. I'm also suspecting that these girls were kept caged, because they seem to have no idea how to free-range. They just kind of lay around together outside while my RIRs are pecking and scratching to their hearts' content. Is there any way to tell if these girls are too old or too young to lay eggs?

Yes there is. If you can catch them (which doesn't sound hard if they are just laying around) Check their vent. If it is white and dry they are not laying, if it is pink and moist they ARE laying.

On another note why did you bring adult birds home to your existing flock? You want to give them something that will kill them? You'll be lucky if you just have mites....your flock is immune to what they have been exposed to, but if they haven't been exposed to merik's or other respiratory illnesses, they could catch them from the new adults. ALL new arrivals should be quarrentined for 30 days to make sure they don't have anything that will kill your existing flock. *crossing my fingers for ya*

 

[lostinthemusic]

Yikes! I'm new to this, and I didn't think to quarantine the new hens. Since they've all been together for 9 days, is there any sense in quarantining them now? Also, how long could it be until my original flock would start showing symptoms of illness? Thank you for your help!

 

[Cass]

Yikes! I'm new to this, and I didn't think to quarantine the new hens. Since they've all been together for 9 days, is there any sense in quarantining them now? Also, how long could it be until my original flock would start showing symptoms of illness? Thank you for your help!

If they have been living in the same coop for 9 days it really would be silly to separate them at this point, however if you choose to bring adult birds home to your flock in the future, please remember bio-security and quarentine your new birds until you are sure that they are not ill. And even at that you can still kill your existing flock ....not all new birds will exhibit symptoms of illnesses that can kill non-immune birds.

Some people never bring adult birds into their flock....day old chicks only or hatching eggs. (Some say that even that isn't safe enough....but outside of hatching only your own eggs, it is the best you can do toward bio-security)

Since you are new to chickens it would be worth the time to google chickens/bio-security and find out for yourself what "they" say about it and find what works for you.

I have to admit that I HAVE introduced adult birds to my flock and crossed my fingers and hoped none of them died. Why? Because I trusted the person giving me the birds (had seen her flock and set up, talked to her about bio-security, etc) But there are very few people that I would trust to do that with. I could have killed my entire exisiting flock if her birds were carrierers of something that my flock wasn't immune to. I got lucky because of HER bio-security for her own flock....and my lack of concern about killing my own birds (my flock at the time was not what I wanted anyway, so if they died I would have just started again. LOL)