egg record!/ cat biscuits

[bussinspain]

Well, we have well and truly beaten last years egg totals for January (7 layers)
January 2014 62 eggs
Janury 2015 (18 days so far) 76 eggs
I'm sure it's the cat biscuits that are helping

[Gema13]

What breed of hens do you have? We have black rocks who lay a great amount of eggs but I'm curious about the cat biscuits and if my ladies will lay more.

[bussinspain]

I haven't got a clue as to their breeds - just 4 brown hens and 3 black(ish) hens.

[roitelet]

My hens weren't laying so added a couple of handfuls of cat biscuits to their hot mash and, voila EGGS

[Glutton4...]

You'll probably find it is the different protein levels. Obviously, it won't be a good idea in the long term though.

I have found that mine lay more when they're confined to barracks for longer. ie Let out later in the mornings, and shut in earlier in the evening. I put this down to the fact they eat more pellets than when they're scratching about on the grass, and eating worms and bugs.

[libbyloulou]

What temp is it in spain this time of year? Only got my 4 in November, x bat, havn't seen an egg yet.

[Scarlet]

What temp is it in spain this time of year? Only got my 4 in November, x bat, havn't seen an egg yet.

Chickens usually reduce or stop laying during winter, they need a rest especially during and after a moult. They need a certain amount of daylight hours to produce an egg (forgotten how many!) mine usually start again mid - late feb although you do get a few through the winter weeks, it's not a huge amount. Young hens tend to lay more through the winter.
Your hens will have had a lot to deal with since Nov, they are probably pretty worn out. Had a shock of coming out of a barn. Being free range is great but it may take a while to get used to this cold.what condition are they in.

[bussinspain]

What temp is it in spain this time of year? Only got my 4 in November, x bat, havn't seen an egg yet.

It's blooming chilly (aka cold) at the mo here in the hills. But the chickens seem fine. We have a canopy over most of the pen the keep most of the frost and rain off them.

[bussinspain]

Chickens usually reduce or stop laying during winter, they need a rest especially during and after a moult. They need a certain amount of daylight hours to produce an egg (forgotten how many!) mine usually start again mid - late feb although you do get a few through the winter weeks, it's not a huge amount. Young hens tend to lay more through the winter.
Your hens will have had a lot to deal with since Nov, they are probably pretty worn out. Had a shock of coming out of a barn. Being free range is great but it may take a while to get used to this cold.what condition are they in.

Our hens get their daily ration of mixed corn, maize and pellets, spare veggies, cakes, bread etc., from the kitchen. We have had most of these girls since September 2013 - bought as POL's. They have a large pen that we move around (takes 4 of us to move it) and I put straw down in the outer pen to keep the mud off of them. They have gone through a moult and are now looking quite good - but they are still laying well. We can't let them out to roam because of our 2 dogs and the neighbour's 4 dogs, the buzzards and eagles here would also find them a tasty morsel. They are happy girls

[Scarlet]

Our hens get their daily ration of mixed corn, maize and pellets, spare veggies, cakes, bread etc., from the kitchen. We have had most of these girls since September 2013 - bought as POL's. They have a large pen that we move around (takes 4 of us to move it) and I put straw down in the outer pen to keep the mud off of them. They have gone through a moult and are now looking quite good - but they are still laying well.

Chickens are at their peak laying production from 1-2years after which laying will start to lessen especially so during the winter. I always ensure I introduce new birds every year to ensure we get eggs throughout the winter. Battery hens are usually retired anywhere around 18 months as their egg production will start to slow. Obviously it's different for each bird but they've lived a stressful life and the move into a new home with grass can be a shock to their systems . I'm really not surprised Libbys hens are not laying. Everyone manages their hens differently, personally I don't feed scraps, they get layers with corn in the afternoon and I rarely get any problems.