Yeah, 13 weeks and still no eggs...

[Bettacreek]

So, the buttons are STILL not laying. They're under artificial lighting, get oystershell grit, and they're in a place that the cat can't bother them. No changes have been made in awhile, but still, no eggs. The breeder's birds were laying by six weeks, so they should have been early layers. There are no burried eggs, no egg particles, nothing. So... what is going on?! I KNOW I have at least one pair, the other couple, I'm unsure of gender.

 

[TillinWithMyPeeps]

I had some Coturnix that I was expecting eggs from in 6 weeks, it took them 6 months to start laying. Six Months!!

 

[citalk2much]

I find that if mine are not nice and cozy warm they won't lay maybe mine are just spoiled

 

[monarc23]

Quote:
where were they for these 6 months? In doors or outside? (curious i may be able to explain why).


As for you bettacreek... that's a big I dunno from me LOL!

 

[Bettacreek]

I'm soon going to strangle them. I just don't know what else to try! I'm thinking that I might take the females from the next batch (they're about 5-6 weeks now) and dump them into a big cage, move the ivory RB female and the cinnie RB male into that cage and see if they'll do a community breeding. If not, I may try taking a community sized cage (enough for about 8 birds if I remember correctly) and putting just the pair in it, see if they're just being picky little brats.

So frustrating.

 

[AimsChickies]

Mine took MUCH longer than the 6 weeks to start.

 

[Bettacreek]

Actually, if they don't lay soon, I may just get rid of them.

The second batch, I let Gremmie play with them, so they're MUCH calmer. He of course isn't allowed to pick them up, but he goes up to the cage when the top is off, and he'll stick his hand in the cage and touch them, or touch them with his swiffer duster thing (don't ask, lol). They don't *like* it, but they deal with it without spazzing out. The adult pairs are terrible, I swear, you could fart in the farthest room away from them and they'd have a heart attack. Maybe if I do mix them with the younger birds, they'd learn that people aren't the devil... I'm glad that I have the youngest batch of buttons growing up with chickens, I honestly think that may be part of why the last two batches have been a little more docile. Hopefully the coturnix will start laying when the buttons do (if the buttons EVER lay), then the coturnix can "teach" the buttons, because I can't raise chickens EVERY time I raise buttons, lol.

 

[Marlinchaser]

Quote:
Have you checked your diet? That is scary, and what do you feed the birds?

 

[TillinWithMyPeeps]

Quote:
where were they for these 6 months? In doors or outside? (curious i may be able to explain why).

Outside, the weird thing is that they eventually started laying in the middle of winter...

 

[sandyj]

My button started laying at about 14 - 15 weeks. Now she lays one egg everyday. She started lay around March 8. Maybe more light????

sandyj