Helen Caulfield Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hi, I am new to all this! I got Rosie and Ruby on the 24th August and am still awaiting my first egg. I thought they would be laying by now but we have an awful lot of fox activity at night and are wondering if they are perhaps a bit stressed!? Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. Helen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocolatedog Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hi - I'm sorry I'm not an expert and can't really help, but what kind of hens are they? And how old were they when you got them? (It may help someone else understand what the problem is......) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hi Helen and welcome! I have a Ruby and Rosie too! Not sure about the answer to your question though. At a guess, I would say that providing they are nice and secure in their eglu at night, they would be pretty oblivious to the fox. Other members on here have foxes but I don't think it affects their laying. What breed are they? That might have something to do with it, plus the shorter days will delay them coming into lay. Tell us more about your girls! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helen Caulfield Posted October 20, 2007 Author Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hello again, sorry for being a bit vague - my 2 girls are Miss Pepperpot's and I was told they were about 17/18 weeks when I got them. We check them regulary and they are healthy and feeding well. Am I just being impatient....I can't wait for my first egg! The kids love the chooks and they are great pets, giving us hours of fun - I really worry about the foxes here as they are such a pain. H Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hm, I'd also have expected them to be laying by now. Are their combs and wattles well developed and nice and red? Do they squat down when you go to catch them? These are signs of impending egg arrival. If they have all these signs, what are you feeding them? Layers pellets contain everything they need for egg production. Too many treats can affect this. If all these are OK, you could very well be right and it's the stress of the foxes. What about an electric fence around the eglu at night?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KateP Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 We got our chickens on 22 August - a pepperpot and a gingernut ranger. Neither of them have laid an egg yet but their combs and faces are red and the pepperpot has just started to crouch when I put my hand over her back (well it's sort of a half crouch but she's getting there!). I've never seen any foxes in our garden and just assumed that we haven't had any eggs yet as the days are getting shorter and also that maybe they were younger than 18 weeks when they arrived. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 They usually start laying within a week or so of crouching, but as has been said, the shorter days will have an impact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 I've had fox interference from very early on (till I got a Foxwatch) - I've even looked up the garden and seen him pawing at the side of the run. While there was a lot of noise from my girls, it didn't affect their laying at all - since they started they have both laid nearly every day. I'd think it's more likely that yours just aren't quite ready to lay, Helen - it does seem like forever before the first egg comes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gallina Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Provided you lock them in the Eglu at night, they go into a daze and won't even notice the fox. But you must do this, every night: otherwise they will be very vulnerable on the early summer mornings. Mine were tormented by day by a fox that used to lie on top of their run, and they weren't bothered much and continued laying normally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
