Single hen

[zabboo]

We have 2 lovely Gingernut Rangers. Unfortunately they have taken to eating their own eggs and we dont want them anymore. Does anyone want to take them off our hands. I have a friend who's offered to "deal" with them for us but I'd rather not go down that route if it can be avoided.

 

They are called Rio and GoGo. They're healthy and lively.

 

We're in berkshire and i could deliver them locally. (Berks/Oxon).

 

many thanks.

 

Andy

[fluffyknickers]

If its just because of the eating eggs thing then i believe there are ways to stop this eg leaving fake eggs in the nest.

 

If not just that then hope you find them a good home.

 

Good luck.

M

[Egluntyne]

Pot eggs in the nest, or blown eggs filled with curry or mustard, plus regular egg collection should cure them of this habit.

[Egg Lou]

Give me today to convince OH ( as due to move house so been told no more at the mo!) if sucessfull will gladly take them and try to break the habit (with advice from others on here! .. I know winnersh well and work in Bracknell so no problem collecting.

 

I'll let you know asap!

 

 

Lou

[poachedegg]

Fingers crossed Egg Lou . Though, hopefully, there may be solution to the problem.

Edited March 3, 2009 by Guest

[The Dogmother]

What a shame Andy, I remember your first post, full of delight at getting your new hens.

 

Egg eating is easily cured, so I hope that you think again and decide to keep them, cure them of egg eating and enjoy their antics as they potter into retirement. Stock rotation with bringing in new hens as yours start to tail off laying is easy enough too.

 

Let me know if you need any pot eggs for the next.

[Mrs Frugal]

A handful of golf balls will do the same thing as pot eggs . If the eggs are breaking because the shells are weak, you could try giving calcium supplements and lots of fresh green veggies to aid calcium absorption. If they've not been wormed recently or checked for skin parasites, it's worth treating them as these can also cause soft shelled eggs which break as they are laid, allowing the hens to eat the contents.

[zabboo]

Thanks for all your replys.

 

We've tried the Mustard eggs, the Golf Balls and the fake egg! The little blighters just seem to love eating eggs! (Cant blame them so do I!)

 

We've just reached the end of the road and, to be honest, are fed up. Things were going really well for a year and a half. The eggs were beautiful and the chickens were fun. I dismantle and clean out the eglu every saturday and for the last 6 months or so we've only managed to rescue a couple of eggs a week.

 

Now i need to give up and move them on before I do them in. (or they do me in).

 

cheers

 

Andy

 

PS - I`m going to get 2 more as soon as they're gone.

[splodge88]

Just a point for when you get the new ones...make sure you give them all hte things they need for EXTRA tough shells...just in case you end up with a repeat

Hope it all works out.

[furryelephant]

Not wishing to lecture as I'm sure this isn't an easy decision for you but if the hens are 18 months old they're not going to be laying regularly for very long before they approach old age hen status - surely by passing them on at this stage you're passing on what would be known in the horse world as a "field ornament" to someone else.

 

Just my opinion - if you get pets then you should keep them until the happy end, not pass them on when you can't be bothered with the hassle/effort/upkeep any more? It seems that by getting more hens that you're not bored with hens - just by these two? Sorry, they may not be perfect and they may have bad habits, so why pass them and their habits to someone else? So you can have some hens that behave themselves? My two are as noisy as hell and I've had to take steps to minimise the disruption to our neighbours, but never did I think "Oh, I'll pass them to someone else and get some that suit me better" - seems rather selfish to me.

 

Paula

[BeckyBoo]

Not wishing to lecture as I'm sure this isn't an easy decision for you but if the hens are 18 months old they're not going to be laying regularly for very long before they approach old age hen status - surely by passing them on at this stage you're passing on what would be known in the horse world as a "field ornament" to someone else.

 

Just my opinion - if you get pets then you should keep them until the happy end, not pass them on when you can't be bothered with the hassle/effort/upkeep any more? It seems that by getting more hens that you're not bored with hens - just by these two? Sorry, they may not be perfect and they may have bad habits, so why pass them and their habits to someone else? So you can have some hens that behave themselves? My two are as noisy as hell and I've had to take steps to minimise the disruption to our neighbours, but never did I think "Oh, I'll pass them to someone else and get some that suit me better" - seems rather selfish to me.

 

Paula

 

Have to say I sort of agree, what will you do with the two new ones in 18 months when they're spent too, or if they also turn out to be egg eaters? I suppose if you only want egg-laying hens then fair enough, and there will be people on here who will be happy to take on spent hens to let them live out their days as pets, Could you not consider merely adding to your flock, a couple of younger hens to make up for the lack of eggs from the others? There are alternative nest boxes as well, that allow the egg to roll away from the hen once laid.

 

BeckyBoo

 

Just a thought anyway.

[chelsea]

I kind of agree with the last 2 replies to be honest, at times hen keeping can be stressful (we have had a lot of illness) and they are noisy little blighters too .

 

If you have room, maybe getting some new arrivals may help? Of course you'd have the initial "introduction" phase at first but once intergrated you may find your flock becomes happier... when we increased our girls from 1 to 4 hens after a death my original girl was kept very busy keeping the flock in order - this may take their minds off the egg eating. (just an idea )

[Tweety]

Sorry, but I agree with the last 3 replies too.

[fluffyknickers]

I agree too. I cant imagine getting rid of mine just because they are laying but eating them. Must be annoying but I just feel they arent that dispensable. Could you not get your new ones AND keep your old ones and deal with the introductions?

[pinkytinsel]

Maybe Andy has "woken up and smelt the coffee"! Hens can be fab but they can also be noisy, messy and expensive if something goes wrong.

 

Unfortunately, this isn't mentioned on the forum very often when new people come on wanting advice about hens.

 

On the website and leaflet it says hens are not noisy and that "all you will hear is soft clucking when an egg is laid". Tosh! All I heard was squawking at 4am in the morning and the knock of EH at my door.

[chelsea]

 

Unfortunately, this isn't mentioned on the forum very often when new people come on wanting advice about hens.

.

 

 

Some hens are different than others though I have always stated in my posts that my lot are a noisy bunch. As with any pet be it dog, cat, rabbit & chickens they are a commitment and the good goes with the bad (along with illnesses & vet bills). Some forum posters may have been fortunate to have prolific layers, with no illness and chooks as quiet as mice.

[poachedegg]

On the website and leaflet it says hens are not noisy and that "all you will hear is soft clucking when an egg is laid". Tosh! All I heard was squawking at 4am in the morning and the knock of EH at my door.

 

One or two of mine can sometimes make a noise (sometimes like a goose!), however never at 4am as they are shut away - so there are steps to take to prevent any issues.

[pinkmagic]

Agree about the special egg box, where the eggs roll away after being laid. Not sure if you can buy them ready made but my mums partner made one for the hens we had when we where kids.

[The Dogmother]

Rollaway nest boxes are readily available.

 

I have 12 feathered hellions and they never disturb the neighbours, my firend's flock on the other hand sound like a noisy flock of seagulls! Havign said that, her neighbours dog is far noisier.

[madchickenlady]

My girls can make a hell of a racket, but only during the day, and are no louder than dogs barking/kids playing/car stereos etc.

[C&T]

Just goes to show how all our circumstances are different I guess...

 

Some live in small terraced houses with tiny gardens and very close to neighbours and have to worry about their reactions, while others live in large farms away from any neighbours and can keep flocks of chickens and very vocal cockerels with no problems what so ever.

 

Personally, I think if you get a pet, you must look into it and be prepared for anything that is thrown at you. BUT. Having said that, circumstances can change, and reality can be tougher then any research may say. So if keeping that pet is no longer an option, then actively looking for a new and loving home is the responsible thing to do.

 

The alternatives of either abandoning the animal or worse to not bear thinking about.

 

Without knowing the full story, it can be easy to jump to conclusions?

[wiblick]

I have to admit I'll be taking a fairl utilitarian approach to my hens. They will be despatched, unless of extraordinary character, once they stop laying.

[Guest]

do you have a local children's farm or petting zoo sort of arrangement near you? They might be able to take your girls, even some schools have their own pets/poultry. Mine used to and that was 30+ years ago!

 

I think that's what sparked my interest in our feathered friends. The funny thing is, the former school secretary is now my next door neighbour so she can't complain about our girls because the school got me interested in birds in the first place

 

I hope they find a loving home.

[fluffyknickers]

I dont think the noise and the mess is the original posters reason for getting rid of them (giving them away) as he wouldnt be getting more if that was the case and he would have said.

 

However as he has them for eggs at least he is trying to rehome them opposed to killing them - so that's a good thing.

 

I just asked a bloke in work, his mum keep chickens, what his mum would do if one stopped laying or started eating eggs - he said "kill it as it wouldn't be earning its keep". So we just had this debate and he said they (his mum's) are kept for eggs and they arent pets (like mine) and dont have names etc. There is the difference.

 

We then also discussed if they were ill or needed anything and he said they would also be disposed of as would cost them more to help/cure than to just get another one.

 

So it all depends on your mind-set when it comes to them and why we keep them. Personlly, I couldnt get rid of mine if they were eating eggs or stopped laying.

 

Perhaps some people have animals to do jobs - cows to eat and milk, cats to catch and kill vermin, dogs to work on farms etc??? Would be interesting to see if someone who only kept chickens for eggs and disposed of them if they stopped laying also has a dog for cuddles and walking and comfort, or a rabbit for???? or a Guinea Pig for ???????.

 

I just asked the same guy in work out of interest if his mum has any other animals, his answer is yes a couple of dogs, I asked what job they did and he said "they are pets they dont do anything apart from be a pet".

 

Just some thoughts really.

 

M

[Guest]

well, I got my girls for eggs first and foremost but all our original girls have stopped laying now but will live out their retirement with us because we owe them that after all they've given us.

 

Our 2 newer girls and our bantams are all laying so we have more than enough eggs and, as my sister's BF put it so succinctly one day when he asked why i didn't have the names of the non laying hens on the egg box, "but it's a team effort!"