Please help me figure this out!
I have 13 hens. 10 are 2 years and 9 months, 3 are about 18 months. I was feeding them Purina layer crumbles, and then switched 3-4 months ago to Kalmbach 16% protein, then upped to 17% protein last month. I have quit giving all treats except for a bit of Kalmbach Henhouse Reserve and occasionally some greens. They have a large coop and run, plenty of space. They have supplementary oyster shell available at all times next to their waterers. Feeders and waterers are in separate ends of their run so everyone has a chance to eat.
For most of the last year, egg production has been off. I have made excuses:
Winter - because of the cold/short days. maybe 2-4 eggs daily
Spring - things picked up. Most days around 6 eggs, I got 10 eggs once or twice.
Summer - it really was a hot one (they had a large fan and electrolytes, their coop is shaded). 2-3 eggs per day and with SUPER thin shells, which were often broken in the boxes. Clearly some of the egg was eaten, but not like I would think if egg eating was a big problem.
Late summer - 4 of them exhibited signs of illness: droopy, pale combs, low appetite, diarrhea, sitting to themselves hunched up. I treated with Corrid for 10-12 days and did a deep clean in their coop and run. Everything raked out, DE in the empty boxes and coops, with a fresh layer of pine shavings on top. Their appearance improved significantly, but the combs were droopy for a little while. All appearances are back to normal. Egg production still at 2-3 per day, but shell quality is much improved.
Early Fall - egg production is incredibly low, even lower than before. Some days I get no eggs at all. 1-2 usually, sometimes 3. There are no broken eggs, no signs of yolk in the shavings. 2-3 are clearly molting, the others aren't. I thought maybe I should try treating with Backyard Chickens Zyfend A. They had it for around 10 days, with no change whatsoever.
Yesterday, I got one egg with a thin shell which cracked when I picked it up. The day before I got NO eggs. The day before that there were 2.
What am I missing? I think I should be getting at a minimum 6/day from 13 hens, right?
Thanks for anything you can add.
Georgia
I have 13 hens. 10 are 2 years and 9 months, 3 are about 18 months. I was feeding them Purina layer crumbles, and then switched 3-4 months ago to Kalmbach 16% protein, then upped to 17% protein last month. I have quit giving all treats except for a bit of Kalmbach Henhouse Reserve and occasionally some greens. They have a large coop and run, plenty of space. They have supplementary oyster shell available at all times next to their waterers. Feeders and waterers are in separate ends of their run so everyone has a chance to eat.
For most of the last year, egg production has been off. I have made excuses:
Winter - because of the cold/short days. maybe 2-4 eggs daily
Spring - things picked up. Most days around 6 eggs, I got 10 eggs once or twice.
Summer - it really was a hot one (they had a large fan and electrolytes, their coop is shaded). 2-3 eggs per day and with SUPER thin shells, which were often broken in the boxes. Clearly some of the egg was eaten, but not like I would think if egg eating was a big problem.
Late summer - 4 of them exhibited signs of illness: droopy, pale combs, low appetite, diarrhea, sitting to themselves hunched up. I treated with Corrid for 10-12 days and did a deep clean in their coop and run. Everything raked out, DE in the empty boxes and coops, with a fresh layer of pine shavings on top. Their appearance improved significantly, but the combs were droopy for a little while. All appearances are back to normal. Egg production still at 2-3 per day, but shell quality is much improved.
Early Fall - egg production is incredibly low, even lower than before. Some days I get no eggs at all. 1-2 usually, sometimes 3. There are no broken eggs, no signs of yolk in the shavings. 2-3 are clearly molting, the others aren't. I thought maybe I should try treating with Backyard Chickens Zyfend A. They had it for around 10 days, with no change whatsoever.
Yesterday, I got one egg with a thin shell which cracked when I picked it up. The day before I got NO eggs. The day before that there were 2.
What am I missing? I think I should be getting at a minimum 6/day from 13 hens, right?
Thanks for anything you can add.
Georgia