New hens not going into Eglu Go Up

[Chicken Momma]

... or at least Margo is!

 

Margo and Betty arrived in a sack just over 3 weeks ago and went from being pretty much feral to the lofty heights of an Eglu Go!

 

3 weeks to the day - with much fanfare and happy clucky sounds Margo laid her first egg weighing in at 55gms. I have had an egg each day since with today's (Wednesday 26th) weighing in at 62gms

 

Girl done good!

 

However, Betty is showing no signs at all - other than peering anxiously into the coop when Margo is laying (she is not allowed in apparently).

 

I have no idea how old the chooks are (or even if Margo is a new layer or just new to me) but I wondered if - in a flock of two - one chicken laying could kind of 'set the other off' through pheremones or something.

 

Just curious - very happy with a perfect egg every day - particularly at this time of year!

 

Look forward to your comments!

[zakjon-98]

Well done Margo Hopefully Betty will get the idea soon. Some things to look out for when a hen is coming into lay is a redder comb and she should start to crouch.

[Chicken Momma]

By way of an update..

 

Yesterday Betty laid her first egg! I had noticed over the last couple of weeks that her comb (although smaller than Margo's) seemed a little redder; her body shape had become more chicken-like (only on this forum would people understand! ) and her tail feathers were all back in. I'm thinking that the moult she was in when she came to me might have been a transitional moult from adolescent to full-grown.

 

Anyway she started behaving in the same way as Margo had done (14 eggs ago!) in that she ran nervously all round the perimeter of the run and dived in and out of the nestbox in the Go. She took a good long while - not helped by Margo standing outside protesting about HER need to use the nestbox - but made a great deal less noise about it than M had (for which I am extremely grateful) She produced a 56gm egg at around 1700 hours by which time of course it was getting dark and rather too late for M to lay. All in all she was pretty casual about the whole thing.

 

Of course this morning Margo was just BUSTING to boot Betty out of the Eglu so she could lay Egg Number 15!

 

SO pleased with these two chooks - especially given the time of year!

 

I have learned so MUCH since I got these hens!

 

P.S. They are Not GIngernut Rangers but COMO's (Chickens of Mixed Origin!)

[zakjon-98]

That's great Hope she carries on laying lots of eggs for you