How to Care for Chickens When They Start Laying Eggs
Back in late spring, I quadrupled the number of creatures I was responsible for when I picked up four chicks from a local farm store and placed them in a brooder in my dining room. These four harbingers of chaos now live in a luxurious chicken coop in the backyard and about three weeks ago they stopped freeloading, giving me several delightfully colored eggs every day. My little chicks are now grown ladies , so a lot of changes and considerations had to be made. Once your chickens start laying (which should be now if you have spring chickens), here’s what you need to think about.
Your chicken celebrates life cycles too
Up to 20 weeks, chicks are considered to be in the grower/starter stage. As soon as they start laying eggs or after 20 weeks (this usually coincides) they enter the laying stage. Hens typically remain in this phase for three years, and although production begins to decline at the end of this period, some hens will continue to lay eggs into later years, although this will be much less frequent. According to Sean Warner, CEO of Grubbly Farms, which sells backyard poultry products, there is actually a growing population of older chickens, which he calls “senior chicks,” meaning they no longer lay eggs but are kept as pets. . Due to COVID-19, most COVID chickens (the chickens everyone was buying during the backyard poultry boom) are now adult chickens.
Their diet must change
Up to this point, your chickens have been fed starter feed and chicken grits. At 20 weeks, whether your chicks are laying eggs or not, you should switch to a layer feed, Warner says. “Your chicks may be stunted if they don’t meet all their nutritional needs,” he explained. Chicken feed is either starter or layer feed and they have different nutrient contents. Your laying birds will need more calcium as well as adequate amounts of protein and carbohydrates.
The Importance of Sand and Oyster Shells
When my chickens were a few weeks old, I started adding “chicken grits” to their food. Sand plays an important role in helping chicks break down and digest feed. When your chickens become laying hens, they switch to regular grits, which contain larger particles. It is equally important to supplement your laying chicks’ diet with oyster shells or another high-calcium source. I was surprised at how enthusiastic my birds were about the new snack, and it was reflected almost immediately in the quality of the eggs.
Chickens are smart eaters
From what I’ve read, chickens need about a pound of oyster shells a month, so I was almost offended by the rudeness of my feathered guests when they crushed five pounds of oyster shells over the course of a few weeks. However, Warner did tell me something interesting about chickens that I didn’t know: they are amazing self-regulators. They eat what they need. If chickens are eating so many shredded oysters, they need calcium (remember, eggs are 96% calcium). The food shaming in my coop stopped immediately (I swear). These days it’s a celebration of all-you-can-eat oyster shells.
By the way, eggs can also help determine if chickens have calcium problems. Elongated, misshapen, or spotted eggs may be signs of stuck or clogged eggs, which is the result of too much or not enough calcium.
Another interesting fact that Warner suggested was that chickens cannot taste their food, so they eat only visually. They want to eat something attractive, so recognition helps. This is one reason why some people choose kibble instead of pellets. Pellets are generally easier for chicken coop owners to handle, but crumbles are more attractive to chickens, and if you have chickens with smaller beaks , they will be easier to consume.
How important are supplements for backyard birds?
I naively thought that I would buy some chicken feed and be done with it once I got those chickens, and now am often faced when purchasing feed online with additives and additional ingredients that I should consider for my chickens. I asked Warner what actually counts as “important” for your backyard flock. Although Grubbly Farms sells both probiotics and vitamin water supplements , Warner explained that they are best used preventatively during times of impending stress: changing seasons, getting new birds, or moving. You should consider boosting your birds’ immune systems in the weeks leading up to these events rather than using these supplements year-round. While you can certainly use these supplements on a regular basis, they will not be considered “essential.” As winter sets in, birds experience events such as molting, and during this time additional nutrition in the form of supplements such as biotin, which helps retain moisture, can be beneficial. Probiotics and vitamins can help prevent flock problems such as test butt, a common problem in chicken coops. Additional supplements such as “herbal blends” are probably less beneficial. Warner felt the same way about products such as “chicken coop conditioner,” designed to eliminate unpleasant odors in chicken coops. Warner said: “If you’re buying quality food it’s not necessary, they don’t offer that much value.”
Snacks are important
Warner also talked about the benefits of snacks for birds. If quality of life is your concern, chickens need enrichment, so glue bits, seeds or snacks such as Grubblies, which contain protein, fat, thiamine and lysine, should be part of their diet. Warner had a good point too. Since chickens regulate their own nutrient intake, the calcium in treats like Grubblies means your chickens will consume less oyster shells. Since I had already invested in a swing set and a xylophone for my congregation, it was easy to add snacks. The chickens seem grateful, judging by how often they knock on the back door now.
How to Get Omega-Fortified Eggs
All you need to do to get omega-fortified eggs is supplement your chickens’ diet. There are special blends for this, such as Grubbly Farm’s Omega Topper , which include ingredients such as flax seeds, dried carrots to increase the omega-3 and omega-6 content in your birds, which they pass into their eggs.
Winter preparations go beyond food
Because chickens receive less light during the winter, they lay fewer eggs (chicks need 14 to 16 hours of light per day to lay eggs). Farmers sometimes use artificial lighting to increase their egg supply in winter, but the common belief these days is that this is an ethically bad idea. Your chickens need winter to rest. Warner agreed with this assessment, but also noted that a much larger problem with artificial lighting is the safety issue associated with having an electrical device near chickens and flammable bedding. (I was disappointed by this because my chickens have a fan that they like to fluff themselves up in front of in the summer, and I was planning on moving into some lounge chairs for the winter.)
To prepare for winter, your chickens need to be able to hide in bedding, which means there is enough bedding and it is clean. You absolutely need to ensure your chicks have access to water no matter the temperature, so if the temperature drops below 30F, you’ll need a plan B. Warner suggested keeping a ping pong ball in the water – the wind will blow it away and blow it away. prevent the top layer from freezing.
Keeping your chickens full is good for you, too.
As adorable as my tiny dinosaurs were, I strongly resisted getting attached to them. Someone might be a rooster (which is illegal within the city limits), plus I have raccoons in my yard from time to time and a Doberman Pinscher who is only three brain cells away from understanding that chickens = chicken nuggets. But as the summer wore on, I couldn’t resist how charming Corma, Kyiv, Marsala and Cacciatore were. During the day they roam freely in the backyard, pecking at my back door; very glad to see me; and endure a lot of chicken hugs. Yes, eggs do me good, but mostly I put them in pretty ombre six-packs and give them away. The eggs are delicious, sure, but the joy I got from my flock was immeasurable for my mental health, so I suspect there are as many “older birds” as Warner claims. I can easily imagine growing old with these four idiots – I hope someone buys me a swing and a xylophone.