How do i get my hens to lay?
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Question by JOHN S: How do i get my hens to lay?
What should i feed my chickens to get them to lay eggs they are 1Year old and stopped laying i just got crickets to feed them will that help.
What do you think? Answer below!
5 Responses to How do i get my hens to lay?
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Chickens usually stop laying when the weather gets cold. There isn’t much you can do except wait for spring.
Cornelius Q. Rockefeller III
April 17, 2013 at 5:05 am
Not unusual for year old chickens to quit laying during the winter months. Just feed them a good laying mash, a little cracked corn. If you live in a cold climate, give them a “hot mash” (laying mash mixed with hot water), your chickens will love it. They will start to lay again in a couple of months, especially when the weather gets nice again.
farm mom
April 17, 2013 at 5:34 am
mine won’t lay either! i have barred rock chickens..try some laying pellets, its not natural but it works
Maggie M
April 17, 2013 at 5:39 am
Egg production is dependent on nutrition but also on the amount of daylight hours. Some birds will slow or stop egg production in winter months, not because the weather is getting colder, but because the days are getting shorter.
You can “trick” your birds into remaining productive by leaving the lights on in the barn or coop to give them 8 hours of light each day.
Also, make sure your birds are getting a good balanced layer feed and healthy treats as well. Our birds free range all summer and get lots of fresh greens and insects. They obviously can’t forage in the winter, so I instead supplement their diet with a gamebird feed that has a higher protein ration, and they get scrambled eggs as a regular treat.
Make sure your birds are getting plenty of crushed oyster shell for calcium as well, which is necessary for egg production. Lack of calcium results in soft or brittle eggs and the risk of your birds becoming egg bound.
stonefieldhill
April 17, 2013 at 5:54 am
An unnatural method to keep a hen laying is to put lights up and keep them on for most or all of the day. This is what commercial hatcheries do to keep the hens laying throughout the year.
I have leghorns, and my girls are still laying an egg a day. (I am not, by the way, using the light method). Are your hens free-range? Generally, giving the hens room to move, plenty to eat, and a variety of feed helps them to be comfortable and lay. However, if it’s too cold or too dark, you’ll just have to wait until spring.
Fahlain
April 17, 2013 at 6:27 am