Winter is waning and spring is on the horizon. The days are getting longer and eggs are once again beginning to appear in nesting boxes. Such a welcome sight! What are some of the things that we, as chicken farmers, can do to help our hens be the best layers that they can be?
One of the most important things is to ensure that your birds have a healthy diet with adequate protein all year long. A laying hen should have a diet that includes between 16% and 22% protein. Whether you buy a commercially produced chicken feed, or mix your own, protein is an important component in egg production. Some foods that are a good source of protein include white or red wheat, black oiled sunflower seeds and meal-worms. I also feed my chickens food scraps from the fridge that include fruits, vegetables, and meat. I try not to fill them up on bread or sugary foods. Above all, make sure that fresh water is available at all times to prevent dehydration… even in the winter. Chickens drink a little water at a time and return to the water dish often throughout the day. During winter months it’s okay to give your chickens some warm water, especially on a particularly cold day, but it’s not necessary. Making sure that your chickens have a well-balanced, healthy diet and plenty of clean water is half the battle in helping your chickens to be good egg layers.
Weather can be a big factor in laying, and helping our chickens through all kinds of weather is important. Extreme weather, either hot or cold, can cause stress on a chicken and stress affects laying. Some folks might take their pet chickens into the house and let them warm up by the fireplace when the temperatures dip below freezing, or cool off in front of the fan in the heat of the summer. However, that is not always a viable option for everyone. During the winter when it’s cold outside, even though most of our chickens are probably not laying anyway, it’s still important to offer proper food and care to our birds so that when laying does resume, our hens are healthy and physically prepared for their job as layers. In the winter, attempt to keep your coop clean and dry.
You can use the deep litter method, continuing to add dry straw to the floor of your coop every so often, building up a substantial layer that will help to insulate the coop. I like to rake some of the really soiled straw out into the yard occasionally and add an additional flake or two of fresh straw. With all the rain and snow and muck in the chicken run, which chickens are very good at tracking into the coop, I have found that raking the soiled straw out into the run keeps some of the mud outside where it belongs, instead of inside the coop. I have tried a few different options in an effort to tame the mud and muck. I have access to some free wood shavings and spreading this in the yard helps as well.
I have read where some people have put down several inches of sand to help with their mud problem, both inside and outside the coop. Find what works best for you in helping to keep your chicken coop clean and dry, especially during the cold. It’s not necessary to put heat lamps or heaters in your coop. Chickens are made to withstand cold weather conditions, provided they have the ability to get out of the wind and rain. Mother Nature has given them a pretty good insulation system so they don’t really need coats or heaters. It is believed that chickens prefer temperatures between 45 and 65 degrees. Doing your best to keep your chicken’s environment clean and dry during cold weather will certainly help when laying season comes around. It is also believed that giving your hens the winter off from laying allows them to expend their energy on staying warm and healthy, and to prepare their bodies for egg laying in the spring.
On the other end of the spectrum, excessive heat during the summer can be a stressor and will also affect laying. Providing shady areas in your chicken yard and good air circulation in your coop will certainly help to temper this stress. I planted two fruit trees in my chicken yard to help with shade. One benefit being that any dropped fruit is theirs!
I also give my chickens cool treats during the hot afternoons, like cold fruits, and vegetables: watermelon, cantaloupe, green cabbage, strawberries. Providing cool, fresh water will also help.
Fresh air and sunshine! I generally feed my chickens outside in their run and try to provide other opportunities for them to get out of the coop and into the yard for some fresh air and exercise, even if it’s just for a few minutes each day. I think that this aides in good overall general health.
Overcrowding can be stressful, as can not having enough nesting boxes. It is recommended that each chicken have a minimum of 2-3 square feet of space in a coop and 8-10 square feet of yard space. Nesting boxes should be 12-14 inches square and there should be a minimum of one nesting box for every 4-5 hens. Nesting boxes should be kept clean and contain a layer of either straw, wood shavings or other nesting material. If you watch a hen in the nesting box, you will notice her burrow down into the nesting material and often throw pieces of the stuff over her back. This might be considered a defense mechanism, protecting herself and her nest from predators. I also put up curtains to partially cover the nesting box opening. This gives the hen a little more privacy, allowing her a chance to relax and be calm. Nesting boxes are an ideal place for bugs and mites to hang out. I always put a liberal sprinkling of barn lime in the boxes before adding their nesting material to discourage pests! You can also add a variety of herbs to discourage pests and encourage laying, for example, lavender used in the nesting box gives off an aroma that calms and relaxes hens while acting as an insect repellent. Marigolds also repel insects, while nasturtiums stimulate egg laying.
Speaking of pests… Parasites and mites will definitely have a negative impact on egg laying. Check your birds periodically for external critters such as lice and mites; and watch for any signs of internal parasites as well, like diarrhea, pale combs and wattles, and listlessness. Treat as appropriate. There are herbs that help with both internal and external parasites. I make it a habit to feed my chickens a variety of herbs throughout the year as a preventative measure.
Chickens like routine and order. Abruptly changing their schedule or their diet can be stressful on a bird and again, stress in a major factor affecting egg laying. If things get out of whack due to unforeseen circumstances, just restart your normal routine as soon as possible and within a short time egg laying will resume. If you need to change their schedule or diet, do so gradually, not a major change all at once – if it can be helped. Alleviating any stress will help your hens lay better.
The key to good, consistent egg laying is a happy, healthy, stress-free hen. Definitely achievable with a little help from the chicken farmer!
