Patridge bantam chicken poorly foot?

[pbfhpunk]

After losing 2 chickens to a fox we got 4 more and basically did the all together now introducing, which after 2 weeks now has been ok (touch wood) there's been some gripes and complaints but no bloodshed or anytihng too violent.

 

So we now have

3 chickens we got in April (bluebelle, blackrock, speckedly)- we were gettting an egg a day from them

2 chickens that aren't as old as the 3 by maybe a couple of months (they were marked as cross hens not sure if this was breed or temprement (sp) I think they're black gross as have agreen sheen)- but are v big and one has laid a couple of eggs - neither crouch though

2 chickens that are probably POL (amber stars)- didn't realise this until we got them back as didn't get a good look at them. they're not crouching yet so got a few weeks.

 

We're now probably getting 2-3 eggs a day, 2 most days, so do you think one of the older may have stopped laying regularly due to the stress?

 

Also don't cickens stop laying over the winter? the 2 youngest are Amber Stars and so if they're POL but it's too dark and cold does this mean we won't get eggs until around March next year?

 

Thanks

 

Helen

[Egluntyne]

Hybrids don't stop laying over winter, but will slow down a bit during their second one.

 

Have you wormed them lately and checked for lice and mites? These can have an impact on their laying.

 

Are they having too many treats? Why not try cutting back, and letting them have pellets and water only till the afternoon, and then a bit of free ranging and one treat to get them back into the run.

 

Are they moulting? It's that time of year and a moult will also affect their laying.

 

Are they laying elsewhere in the garden?

[pbfhpunk]

Might be too many treats, we had a bit of an accident the other day where we emptied the pellets into the food bin and then not thinking emptied a bag of corn on top so took a while to mix it up totally to get an even mix.

 

How do I deal with worming them? and does that mean I have to stop eating the eggs, although as I'm on the cambridge diet that's no worry to me! Although I have a poached egg on a saturday morning as a treat sssshhhhhhhhhhhhh don't tell my counsellor!

 

Hx

[stoice]

we emptied the pellets into the food bin and then not thinking emptied a bag of corn on top so took a while to mix it up totally to get an even mix

 

I'm not sure mixing corn with their pellets it's such a great idea as if they are anything like my monsters they'll pick out the corn and leave the pellets. This could have an effect on their egg laying. I give a small handfull, about an egg cup full of mixed corn to scatter about in the afternoons or to entice them back into their run.

[stoice]

As for worming...

 

Try this or The grape method