Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Poultry and Pets => The Hen House => Topic started by: Lindeggs on July 30, 2011, 06:15
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I have six pullets in my back yard, and three of them had recently started laying. Patience the Barnevelder started on 23 June and established a pattern of laying 3 eggs in a row, then having 1 day off before laying another 3 eggs.
Elsie and Phoebe the Barred Plymouth Rocks had just started laying so I hadn't worked out their pattern yet.
On 19 July Hubby and I went away for a week, and left neighbours in charge - really all they needed to do was collect the eggs and check that all was well. The chickens have a treadle feeder and lots of water containers dotted around, and free range of the back yard.
Unfortunately we got snowed in on our holiday (mid-winter here in the southern hemisphere!) so were delayed getting home by a couple of days. The neighbour contacted me and asked where he could get more food as they had just run out.
When I got home I thanked the neighbour for his efforts and said I hope they had laid him lots of eggs. He said "we got plenty of eggs for the first few days then they stopped laying." ???
I've now been home for three days, and not got a single egg. I've searched all over and not found a secret nest, and watched the girls closely and not seen or heard any of their usual egg-laying signals.
Any theories about what may have happened? :wacko:
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mine usually sulk when I go away - they don't like their routine changing (a bit like when you bring in new birds it can also have the same effect). After ruling out red mite, laying elsewhere, the weather etc I would say they are sulking. Give them a week or two and all should be back to normal :D
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Thanks Joyfull, hopefully they are just sulking then. The weather has been a bit cold, but where I am 'cold' is always above freezing - we don't get snow and rarely get frosts. So that should be well within a chicken's comfort zone.
I'm wondering whether the young neighbour may have missed a day (or two?) of checking on them, and perhaps they went hungry before he noticed their food had run out.
Anyway as you said, after ruling out any other stuff like red mite, all I can do is keep them happy and well-fed and wait for those eggs.
I can't believe they've got me waiting again! ::)
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Just had a chat to the neighbour and got more info. It seems he did check them every day, but most of the time came over at night and collected the eggs by torch-light. I can see how that could stress the chooks - a week of having a stranger sneaking around in your bedroom after dark!
Also it could explain if he found it difficult to check the level in the feeder, so they might have got low on food without him noticing.
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If I shut mine up and its already got dark, they do make anxious noises until I speak and they know its me. I think its the change of routine and the being spooked at night that has done it Lindeggs ;)
Mine love their daily routine and you forget how scatty they get when anything changes, until it does and they tell you in no uncertain terms the next time they see you :)