Need Black Australorp chicks to replace egg eaters

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

We have about 35 chickens: 20+ adult girls, 7 boys of various ages, and the rest various-aged chicks. We get between 1 and 5 eggs a day. NOT GOOD. Ridiculous, actually. We've seen evidence of egg-eaters in each of our two separate groups of egg-layers. Have had it. It's been months since we've gotten a decent production day so we decided we're processing all adults in the 2 laying pens, and possibly a couple of the older chicks who might have already picked up the bad habit.

That leaves us 5 roosters (kept separate in a rooster run), 5 babies under 2 months (hoping all girls), and possibly 3 girls 3-5 months old IF they haven't picked up the habit.

So, I'm going to replenish our laying pens with all new chicks: black australorp. Looking for a source of black australorp day-old chicks, maybe 7 of them, to get right now so they'll be ready to lay in the Spring. We have an in-the-garage coop ready.

Near Denver, CO.

Anybody?

 

[Bettacreek]

If you're having issues, change something. I was having bad production, and when I sold off five of my hens, my production INCREASED. I've seen my birds eating eggs, but it's not honestly an issue. They eat the soft-shelled ones or the ones that fall from the nest and crack. They do NOT actually "attack" good eggs. I'd try butchering out some of the roosters and see what happens, you might get a jolt in production. Make sure there's enough calcium in the diet. Anyways, a change of some sort should jolt them and you might get a really banging egg day the next day.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

I've sold off quite a few laying hens and a couple of roosters already. This is what's left.

The 5 extra roosters are in a separate run so they have no access to eggs. Good for when we need to start again.

They all get plenty of calcium: I give them whey from cheese-making a couple times a week, plus cheese sometimes. They get laying feed, supplemented with scratch sometimes. Free-range in the afternoons (when I can watch because my one of my goats has been escaping and eating their feed in the afternoons).

 

[Beekissed]

These last few months are the normal slow down time for chickens due to molt and this is the time of year that everyone reports egg eaters in their flocks...and again in the spring when they start back to laying. During these two times of year, chicken's reproductive organs spit and sputter a little, producing soft shells, weird shells or even no eggs at all.

Bettacreek is right...all chickens are egg eaters when the opportunities arise. Molting repurposes calcium to feather regrowth, so shells get a little thin this time of year and are easily broken.

Give it time and it will all go away. This is probably not the time to be culling for nonlaying in a flock as the ones that truly are laying will resume before long.

My Pet Chicken lets you order any number of chicks but the shipping is very high.

 

[donrae]

How old are your birds? Are they just molting?

I guess it doesn't matter, if you don't want to feed non producing animals then by all means, don't. Butcher them and replace.

I don't know where you can get that number of chicks from a hatchery except my pet chicken, and as stated they run pretty high in shipping and don't you have to live close to an airport? I looked into them a few years ago but not recently.

It sounds like you'll have plenty of room and to me, it's just as easy to brood a lot of chicks as a few. Why not order 25 from a hatchery, grow them out over the winter and in spring you'll either keep them for eggs or be able to sell point of lay pullets for folks who have the chicken bug but don't want to wait 5ish months to get their own eggs. You could get a variety of breeds to increase the marketability, even some ornamentals. Personally I keep chickens for meat but folks will pay a lot for polish, silkies, other funky looking breeds that don't necessarily lay well but have that "aren't they a-DOR-able" factor.

 

[Emerald]

I've put golf balls in the nests before and any true egg eaters will lose interest(it also took care of a snake who I didn't know was a problem). My problem is the colder weather and the rain we've had has them all inside and they bicker and fight a bit and break eggs. and one gal has soft eggs.. which is a bummer cuz I haven't found which one it is yet. I go to pick them up and squish in my hand.. ick.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

I'll pick up some golf balls this week.

My chickens range in age from 2 weeks old to 4 years old.

Like the idea of raising to point of lay so I'll look into getting about 15 black australorps and 10 various others, maybe including silkies although we have several that we'll probably keep. I do love chicks! Our two brooder coops in the garage have chicks in them already but we can move the month-olds to an outdoor brooder coop so that'll free up a brooder coop.

Was still hoping to find someone on here that had some extra black australorp chicks available.

Thanks.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

Okay, just ordered 15 black australorp females and 10 red star straight run from McMurray. Will be shipped on Oct 24 and arrive Oct 26. Should start laying in March/April. We'll sell probably half in the Spring.

Thanks for the help. Will still get the golf balls, etc.

 

[donrae]

Did you ask for the free chick? Just wondering if it'll be an easter egger cockerel, they've been quite popular from there!

If I had space I'd do the same thing, raise a bunch to point of lay and sell them. Lots of folks don't want to deal with chicks (and lots of folks just shouldn't try!) and want to just step into a ready to lay bird. Plus, you can order different breeds and see who you like and just not sell them.

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

The free chick just showed up on my receipt; I didn't ask for it. No clue what it is, but you're right, it'll probably be a cockeral. Just what we need: another boy!

After I placed the order yesterday, I researched the red star chicken. My thoughts of selling all of them flew out the window. I like that we could breed them and be able to sex the chicks to sell. SOooo many people ask me for just girls when I sell chicks, and never before could I know until they were at least a few weeks old. Now, if I keep the red star in one pen, assuming we get a boy out of the straight run, then I'll be able to sex the chicks to sell. Plus they are dual purpose.

So, who knows what we'll sell in the Spring, or if our egg business grows so much that we need all 25 plus my babies and bantams to provide eggs for our customers. We're starting to sell goat milk cheese SHARES and next year we'll have lots more produce and berries to sell.

See why we just can't keep feeding egg eaters?