Single hen

[patty]

I'm new to this and need a little advice please.

 

My chooks are about 18/19 weeks old and not laying yet. I open their cube up at about 7am and feed them a couple of cups of pellets but they won't take them from the feeder, I have to scatter them on the ground. They stay in the run for an hour or two so that I can be sure they are eating the pellets then I let them out and they disappear off round the garden - I've no idea what they are eating but they look well on it! They don't touch the pellets again all day but do come when I call them late in the pm for a cup of corn which goes down very well. They don't use the water thingy at all. The garden is quite large with lots of vegetation and an abundant supply of slugs.

 

My questions are: should they be eating more manufactured food or are they fine to forage Should I be adding anything to what they are eating to prevent parasites Does free ranging affect egg production in any way If they are not eating the pellets, should I bring them in to prevent rat attack Do they need a dust bath or will they be able to clean themselves in the garden without me putting anything else down

 

Gosh, that's a lot of questions Hopefully someone will be able to advise...

[Christian]

My questions are: should they be eating more manufactured food or are they fine to forage They will be fine foraging and will start eating more pellets when they start laying. Mine ate practically nothing until the eggs came!

 

Should I be adding anything to what they are eating to prevent parasites I use Vermx which is a natural wormer added to the food once a month, some use flubenvet and some don't worm at all. Its up to you really. Maybe get hold of some flubenvet just in case they get worms. Or try Diatom available from the Omlet shop and elsewhere

 

Does free ranging affect egg production in any way Only that the darker green the veg they eat, the more orangey/yellow the yolks are. Yum!

 

If they are not eating the pellets, should I bring them in to prevent rat attack

Once they are locked up for the night you could bring the food in, many swear by it and it reduces the chances of rats. I wouldn't sprinkle the pellets in the run as any not eaten will attract rats. If they are hungry, they will eat from the grub.

 

Do they need a dust bath or will they be able to clean themselves in the garden without me putting anything else down You could provide them with a shallow pot/cat litter tray but they will probably make their own. If you find one, add some dry compost/sand/wood ash and they love it!

.

 

hope this helps, any other questions just ask!

 

Oh and welcome to the forum!!

[Snowy]

Hi and welcome!

I was about to answer but Christian has said it all!

I would just add that optimum egg production is only obtained by letting them eat pellets alone, but if you don't mind that they are not egg machines, they can free range as much as possible. If you are worried about lack of eggs, keep them in their run and feed only pellets. Most people seem to have found a happy medium - pellets only until lunchtime or thereabouts, then freerange in the afternoon.

[Egluntyne]

Mine ate hardly a thing until they started laying.

 

Whereas now......

[jomaxsmith]

My questions are: should they be eating more manufactured food or are they fine to forage Question They will be fine foraging and will start eating more pellets when they start laying. Mine ate practically nothing until the eggs came!

 

That's useful to know, thanks Christian, my 3 chooks have barely eaten any mash in the week we've had them and only the one who's laying seems to eat it. I was told to keep them on Grower's until they'd finished the sack but at this rate that could be a year!

 

Jo

[jomaxsmith]

ooooooooooooooo! I'm an eggspert I've only had chickens a week - how clever of me!!

 

Jo

[Carol U]

My two freerange all day and have each laid an egg a day since they first started laying, so it doesn't appear to affect egg production. Although they forage around the garden, periodically they return to the eglu for a feed of pellets. However, I don't usually give them treats until late afternoon when I get them in for the night. Don't worry about them not eating much before they lay - you'll see a big difference once they start!