Just went out to get eggs. I saw three in the nesting boxes, and unfortunately in my little five-hen flock, three eggs is currently a good day. I had three good layers until one died about a month back, and since then the pressure’s on for last year’s crop to grow the hell up. I went to pick up my three eggs, and my finger went right through the barely-there shell of the one laid by my youngest provider.
Which brought to mind a problem I’ve been having.
Last June I was so pleased to finally be able to score some Rhode Island Red chicks locally. They were supposedly all picked females, so I only bought five. That was either a mistake or – ironically – a piece of good luck. Of the five one died right away, one turned out male, and as for the remaining three…well, let’s just say that the strangest thing about this batch of little’uns is that the only one pulling its weight is the male.
Yeah. Of my three pullets, now pushing ten months of age, one occasionally gives me a usable egg. The middle one rarely poops out something that – well, if it were a baby you’d have to kill it with a rock and determine never to speak of the matter. And then there’s Little Miss Arrested Development who still follows me around pecking my leg and demanding Upsies. That was cute two months ago.
This is only the third batch of hens I’ve raised here since 2012 but I don’t remember the other two taking this long to grow the hell up.
Seymour, on the other hand, is a fine figure of a young man – you’d never believe he’s the same age as the pullets – and has had a remarkably calming effect on the older hens. I’d come to the conclusion that all RIR hens were just naturally psychotic. Turns out they needed a man around the coop. I’m pretty sure there are Gender Studies professors who would argue that this cannot be so.
But getting back to the pullets – I did not plan to raise chicks this year, but I’m seeing no choice. Sure won’t get them from the local feed store, though.
RIRs are usually good layers but ten months is a bit much. A thin shell might indicate too little calcium but if they’re getting layer formula (I prefer pellets over the crumbles – less waste) it ought to be in there. I mean, you could augment their diet with oyster shells but I think that’s probably not the problem.
If you get another opportunity, buy something like “sex links”. Hybrids, strictly bred for laying eggs. Also, Leghorns (either white or brown) are excellent layers for their size (they run a bit smaller than your average RIR) but they tend to be a bit psychotic so if you tend to terrorize chickens, they’d be something like a scene from a Hitchcock movie when you entered the enclosure.
Sounds like nutritional deficiency to me. Lack of calcium will retard egg laying. You getting decent food for them?
Yeah, they’re sure eating a ton of pellets specifically formulated for laying hens. I used to provide oyster shell but they refused to eat it. Can’t see calcium deficiency as the problem here.
Can you buy a variety of chicken breeds when you buy your 6 chicks – like 2 leghorns, two sex links, 2 buff orpingtons or barred rocks? Whatever Seymour is doing for them, it doesn’t include stimulating them to produce eggs. Maybe egg laying is stress reduction for constant strife and they need a bit of mayhem.
If you can get them, I’d recommend barred rocks. They’re really sturdy, lay for a long time, brood well and have pleasant dispositions. I also had good luck with auracanas(sp).