Why aren't my hens laying?

[junebuggena]

What are you feeding?

 

[Amy Adcock]

Maybe that means yours will lay longer!! I feel like once the first one started laying it's like the other ones caught on. Look in odd places on your property too. I moved a tarp off an air compressor one time and found 26 eggs in a pile hiding under there ![/QUO
Wow!! I'll go look around a little more. Thanks for all the advice!!

 

[Amy Adcock]

What are you feeding?

I started out with layer crumble but not I'm using pellets. They feee range a lot too. I give them cracked corn, yogurt, and I raise my own meal worms to feed them.

 

[Amy Adcock]

Just wondering if you have good nest box up off the ground / sometimes they will eat the eggs if they are too close to the ground or on the ground.

I do! There are four up high in the coop. They aren't even scratching around in them. I thought they did that when they got ready to lay. They are right by where they roost so they see them.

 

[junebuggena]

I started out with layer crumble but not I'm using pellets. They feee range a lot too. I give them cracked corn, yogurt, and I raise my own meal worms to feed them.

Starting layer feed too soon can slow down development. They really need that higher protein content of starter/grower to get their production systems developed. Cracked corn is going to lower that protein intake even more.

 

[Amy Adcock]

Starting layer feed too soon can slow down development. They really need that higher protein content of starter/grower to get their production systems developed. Cracked corn is going to lower that protein intake even more.

Oh ok. I'll slack off the corn. They are 21 weeks so do I need to go back to the starter/grower? Or are you saying they may be slower to lay because of this. I only started layer pellets last week.

 

[Amy Adcock]

Starting layer feed too soon can slow down development. They really need that higher protein content of starter/grower to get their production systems developed. Cracked corn is going to lower that protein intake even more.

I started out with starter/grower until they were 16 weeks and went to crumble. I hope my previous post didnt sound like I never fed them that.

 

[junebuggena]

Oh ok. I'll slack off the corn. They are 21 weeks so do I need to go back to the starter/grower? Or are you saying they may be slower to lay because of this. I only started layer pellets last week.

Layer feed is for actively laying birds only. It is probably the corn that is reducing their protein intake, making them take longer to start laying. Protein is just as essential at their age as it is when they are first starting to feather in. They have to finish up their juvenile molts, and then their bodies will have enough energy to get the egg production system matured. Once they are all laying, you can switch to layer feed, or keep them on the starter and set out some crushed oyster shell.