New chucks not laying

[DaveEllon]

Last year in August/Sept I got my first three chucks from a local battery farm. I think they were brand new point of lay and they all gave an egg a day from the start. Two got taken by a fox this year so I got another two a week ago to keep the remaining one, Clare, company. Clare still lays an egg a day every day without fail at about 9am every day. The new ones are from the same batch as her so a year old now and a life entirely spent inside in a big shed with 11,000 others. Pretty grotty condition with feathers missing. They laid an egg each the next day which were probably already inside them and then stopped dead. Not a thing from either in a week.

I'm wondering how long it will be before they settle in here and start laying again. They're both still very scared and won't leave the garage they live in. They don't really know what outside is. They're the same age as Clare and from the same farm and the same batch so if she can still lay then so can they but they don't seem to want to.

[jemberelli]

I think you just need to give them time. They have had a really crappy life and coming to somewhere safe, bright & with freedom to be a chicken is probably taking a bit of getting used to! I think the thing with ex-bats is that eggs are a bonus, just give them some time to settle

[DaveEllon]

I decided I'd had enough of mollycoddling the little so and so's. After a frantic chase round the garage and under the workbenches accompanied by the most horrendous squawking I've ever heard in my life I managed to catch them both and take them round the far side of the garden. 2 minutes later they're both completely happy scratting in the dirt for bugs and trying all the weeds and leaves to see which are edible. Millions of years of evolution kick in pretty quickly it seems.

[Funky chicken]

So basically you asked for advice and chose to ignore it.

[DaveEllon]

I didn't realise it was compulsory to slavishly follow anyone else's opinion on here. I decided to give my new chucks a day out foraging rather than just keep leaving them in the garage after a week inside and they seem quite happy about the whole thing. Both came home at dusk and actually both seem to be less stressed now. Happier with me about. Not running away so fast. Still no eggs though but that's more of a side issue than their general welfare.

I can live without any eggs at all from them but as long as they have a nice life now away from that awful battery farm is the main thing.

[Mo]

I didn't realise it was compulsory to slavishly follow anyone else's opinion on here.

. No one who posts here has to pass an exam first.

There are usually quite a mix of opinions given, so you take your pick. But perhaps with a core of common thinking.
Either that or the advice is asked for after something has happened and we all know how we would have avoided it but too late. We a bit when a first post is the story of new hens being brought home, put in the garden, and flying straight over next door's hedge. 'Well what did they expect'.

If Manda gives advice (particularly on hens and medical matters) I would trust the reading and experience behind it. Also Wendy on dogs.

Glad they are happy after the outing - they know where they live so your timing was right.


As for eggs, when sheds are being cleared some farmers starve the hens for a day, (don't know if it's to save money or to make the job less pooey). That and the stress of the change can put them off lay for a week or two. Also, though the are the same age they may have laid more, lighting is tweaked so that they lay more than once in 24 hrs. Most ex-bats do lay, some for several years.

[jemberelli]

Glad they have settled in - it always makes my heart sing to see them being chickens after they have been rescued! Sounds like the instinct in yours has surfaced, great to hear

[KarenE]

Glad your girls are starting to settle in It's amazing how quickly their natural instincts kick in, isn't it?

A week's not very long for them to settle down and if they are in grotty shape, with lots of feathers missing, it's possible that they may not lay eggs at all/regularly while they adjust to new surroundings, new food and put all their energy and protein into getting their health back up and regrowing their feathers. And as Mo said, if the farmer's stopped feeding them just before they come out, they won't have too much in their systems so that will be contributing too. But now they've started eating your lawn/plants/worms/anything they can find, they'll soon be fine. Although as you know with ex batts, egg laying can be inconsistent.

You could help them on their way by adding some poultry tonic or poultry spice to their water, give them a boost while their systems are getting back to normal. And maybe add a bit of limestone flour to their food as they'll be short on calcium probably. If you want to feed treats, dried mealworms would be good for them, and greens.

Don't worry about them, they're a lot hardier than we think. Are they getting on okay with Claire? Usually they will learn from the existing chickens but it sounds like yours aren't and so have a slightly steeper learning curve?

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi , Chickens are pretty quick on the up take. You have to play it by your own feelings. Also if it goes wrong you spend the next few hours if your lucky correcting it. Not the first time I would have chased a chicken up the street as it saw a worm a hundred yards away !!!! some times it is a good laugh to hear other times it can be sad.
You did nothing wrong and you have got the outcome wanted.
Eggs are a thing you have little control over . I was getting 15-20 eggs a day for a while now 13 .
good luck and enjoy them all.
Bob

[DaveEllon]

The new girls are settling in slowly but doing fine and both getting on with Clare ok. Still no eggs and in fact Clare has stopped laying too but that's not so unusual after a change in her environment.

There is however a massive difference between these two who spent a year at the battery farm and the first three I got last year when they were at Point-of-Lay from the same batch. All three back then were immediately really friendly and came up to me to be stroked and fed from my hand. They all laid eggs from the get go.

These new two have clearly learned to be afraid of people in the last year which is going to take a while to overcome. They still won't go more than a few feet from the garage door. Clare just disappears up to the farm to forage every day as usual and leaves them to their own devices.

[DaveEllon]

Ahhhhhgh, the cunning little boogars. There was an egg today finally up on the top of the bench where the two newbies like to roost. Spurred on by that I had a really good look round the garage and found a clutch of eight hidden in the straw in an old rabbit hutch right in the back corner. They've been laying since the start but not where I'd been looking. Good little girls. :)

[KarenE]

Naughty girls! We forgot to suggest they might be laying somewhere else

So that's a good sign that they've settled in, and I bet they will get used to you and become a lot more friendly in no time. I find mealworms and corn helps a LOT with that

It just goes to show though how different their experiences have been. Claire and your other POLs will have got used to being around humans, but it's possible the working girls may have had very little contact or possibly not very nice contact. They will get used to you though - I am an ex bat rehomer and all my girls have been affectionate, some more so than others, so their personalities will also play a part. At least now they have a chance to develop their personalities and natural behaviours.

[Mad Chick]

Little Madams! Glad they're settling in so well - it won't be long until they're following you around the garden insisting on treats and attention

[DaveEllon]

They're both looking a lot happier anyway. Their combs were almost white when they arrived two weeks ago and flopping right over. Now they're both turning pink and one is standing up straight again. It's no doubt going to take ages before all the missing feathers grow back but little stubs are appearing at least. They're just starting to explore the garden by themselves without prompting which means they'll be getting a better diet now with plenty of greens and wormies. Saves me money on layer pellets too :)

As I found out last year chickens are fantastic gardeners. The original three cleared out every weed in the place including all the heavy undergrowth under the trees that run alongside the farm track I live down. The new ones are just making a start on it for me before I have to get the hoe out.

The main thing is it's nice to know at least two more little animals are having a nice life. Their 11,000 sisters will have gone off to be turned into pet food last week.

[Mo]

They're both looking a lot happier anyway.

Good to hear.

As I found out last year chickens are fantastic gardeners. The original three cleared out every weed in the place including all the heavy undergrowth under the trees that run alongside the farm track I live down. The new ones are just making a start on it for me before I have to get the hoe out.

The also clear lawns, flowerbeds & veg plots and have a go at shrubberies.