 |
| Barred Rock Hen. Photo Credit Covers by Ramona |
We've had chickens for about 5 years and we've learned a lot in that time. After doing a great deal of reading and observing our own flock, we found out that hens take a rest period when they molt their feathers. During that time, they do not produce eggs. Usually in the spring we collect loads of eggs (so many we share them with friends and family) and then they all take the summer off. That's right--no eggs all summer. No egg salad, no hard boiled eggs, no scrambled eggs--it's hard to justify buying eggs when you have 12 hens pecking around the yard all day.
We aren't sure if it's the heat, an extended molting period, or they just need a break! We've also noticed that after a couple years the egg production fizzles out so we get a few new chicks each spring. This year we got four Barred Rock chicks and they are wonderful. Last year we got eight of them and they did very well over the cold winter. They are super friendly (even more friendly than our Buff Orpington hens).
As of this week, our egg production is back on track. I've been getting 2-3 eggs each day from our flock of 12. I think I might have one or two hens who eat the eggs even though they have the proper feed and access to oyster shells. The other night I made fried potatoes mixed with scrambled eggs in my cast iron frying pan--love this!
Our current flock status is: 3 Buff Orpingtons, 8 Barred Rocks, and 1 Barnyard Mix hen (she's white and we got her from my daughter's egg hatching project in school two years ago). The white barnyard mix hen is definitely the TOP CHICK! She also likes to sneak into the garage and lay eggs in the cats' bed.
Regarding the particulars of raising hens--we put a great deal of time, resources, and energy into building a coop and pen that would be safe from the critters. We have raccoons, skunks, coyotes, fishers, badgers, hawks, eagles, owls, wolves, and too many more to list around here that would love to have a chicken dinner. So, we buried the fence into the ground in case a critter tries to dig under the pen. We put a layer of treated lumber around the bottom and chunks of cement and rocks to prevent digging. On the top of the pen we have chicken wire (hardware cloth wire is even better) along with lattice.
Then, we have a slanted roof with tin to keep the rain and snow out. At night, they snuggle into their coop and it can be closed and locked. We took extra care to seal up all openings, even small ones because we have weasels around here and they love to go after chickens. They can get in the smallest little hole. A couple summers ago we were out fishing and got home after dark. A raccoon family had got in and attacked a couple of our chickens. We usually lock everything up before dark. We learned our lesson. The girls need to be locked up tight before the critters come out.
We have a friend who has an open pen (open on the top) and he came home to all of his chickens gone. Hawks, eagles, and owls can easily swoop down and get chickens. I will get some pictures of our coop and pen and post them in case someone is looking for some ideas. We recycled things we had around here and some things from my father in-law's farm.
So far we have not lost any other chickens except for the raccoon incident. Some have died of natural causes though. We've seen a fox lurking around so I worry that he's going to snatch one during the day when they are free ranging. Our property is surrounded by trees, brush, corn field, hay field, a small lake, and many other areas where a fox could hide out and wait for a chicken to come by. The hens are very curious and they roam all over the property. At night they are good about getting back to their coop, but a fox could easily get one.
For right now, we are just going to enjoy the beautiful bounty of eggs our hens are giving us!
