It is spring and you should be getting eggs out the ying-yang, but maybe your adult hens are not laying so great, here is my situation and what I am doing to fix it.
I had 14 adult hens between 9 months old and 3 years old, who were going-gangbusters and I was getting more than a doz. a day. I sold 4 hens, thinking 10 would do the trick, but now I am getting less than half a doz. a day. (Reverse chicken math is my current problem, and not something most people talk about.) Most people may think what the heck, but here are some of the things I did wrong.
Here are the things slowing down production. It has been super windy here. The hens put themselves away before the sun is down to get out of the wind, so that is slowing production. I switched out a door that had a window to let in light, to a windowless door, I wanted to move the door with the window to another part of the coop. Another production killer is I have a broody hen. She sits in the nest box everyone wants and growls. I have a bunch of nest boxes, but they all want the one nest box.
My changes, I cannot do anything about the wind, but I built outdoor pens that the hens can be outside in the morning before I get up. I make sure the outdoor pens they have access to has food and water, because hens need lots of both to lay their eggs. I give them crushed egg shell for protein. I also let them out in the morning as soon as I can, to get them off the roost, (lazy birds.) I put fresh dried grass in the nest boxes, and I put in a new nest box. I can put the broody hen in a different location so she will not have access to that same nest box.
Some hens are fancy breeds that don't lay much, you have to decide, do you want fancy, or egg layers. Also age you can do nothing about, I do have a few older hens. Younger hens you cannot expect a lot from if they are too young. Some people may say..."My hen is 5 months old and no eggs yet..." but depending on the breed, buff orpington for example will not lay until 6 months. (I have chicks, 2 months old growing up to be the next egg layers, and I keep telling myself, no selling, but keeping.)
Best wishes on your spring egg production, please feel free to mention other tips below.
I had 14 adult hens between 9 months old and 3 years old, who were going-gangbusters and I was getting more than a doz. a day. I sold 4 hens, thinking 10 would do the trick, but now I am getting less than half a doz. a day. (Reverse chicken math is my current problem, and not something most people talk about.) Most people may think what the heck, but here are some of the things I did wrong.
Here are the things slowing down production. It has been super windy here. The hens put themselves away before the sun is down to get out of the wind, so that is slowing production. I switched out a door that had a window to let in light, to a windowless door, I wanted to move the door with the window to another part of the coop. Another production killer is I have a broody hen. She sits in the nest box everyone wants and growls. I have a bunch of nest boxes, but they all want the one nest box.
My changes, I cannot do anything about the wind, but I built outdoor pens that the hens can be outside in the morning before I get up. I make sure the outdoor pens they have access to has food and water, because hens need lots of both to lay their eggs. I give them crushed egg shell for protein. I also let them out in the morning as soon as I can, to get them off the roost, (lazy birds.) I put fresh dried grass in the nest boxes, and I put in a new nest box. I can put the broody hen in a different location so she will not have access to that same nest box.
Some hens are fancy breeds that don't lay much, you have to decide, do you want fancy, or egg layers. Also age you can do nothing about, I do have a few older hens. Younger hens you cannot expect a lot from if they are too young. Some people may say..."My hen is 5 months old and no eggs yet..." but depending on the breed, buff orpington for example will not lay until 6 months. (I have chicks, 2 months old growing up to be the next egg layers, and I keep telling myself, no selling, but keeping.)
Best wishes on your spring egg production, please feel free to mention other tips below.
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