I totaled up the eggs laid by our eight hens during 2012 and the "eggregate" came to 1,225! Now two of our hens are elderly, and the other six are getting older, so this is really a great total for our ladies. I wanted to paint "1,225 and counting!" on the side of the barn, but my husband said that looked like bragging. I'm sure most of our neighbors would be cheering the ladies on to bigger and better results!
Oh My! you make me figure out ours. We had 13,140 eggs last year. Of course, we have many many more chickens.
Sounds like a lot of breakfasts and cakes. Three cheers for the ladies.....how old is 'getting older'? Is Miss Moneypenny getting old?? Seems like only yesterday....... spray bottle in hand......... A curious city slicker, Jerry
That is a lot of eggs! I have around 50ish layers at a time.....with an average of 25 eggs a day(that includes the little girls who are supposed to be laying and are still as of yet and should have been for months now) I should be at eggxactly 9,125 eggs.... or 760ish dzn eggs. I had to fill out a census for the US GOV this week and I sorely underestimated the number of eggs I get...oops, by about 1/2. I guess I should keep better records than that. I just recycle the $$ from the eggs back into grain, never making any $$ on them to justify having them, but I enjoy the chickens so I keep some. Next year will only be chickens for us, though. I am not going to keep this many anymore.
I gave the ladies a special New Year's breakfast (warm oatmeal, their absolute favorite) and a round of applause. I'm still thinking of posting their output on the barn wall for everyone to see! Jerry, two years old is "getting older" for an Australorp. Hens who lay a lot of eggs taper off the production earlier than hens who lay fewer eggs. However, Miss Moneypenny is still in her prime (perhaps we'll name one of the new chicks Miss Jean Brody) and laying eggs with the best of them! Carolyn, we got our Gov't. farm survey and will be filling it out this week. Like you, the chickens are not a money-making proposition. If you totaled up what we have invested in chicken wire, coop wood, and feed, those eggs are darned expensive! However, when you take into account the time we spend watching the hens and laughing, rather than watching TV, we save on electricity!
I so TOTALLY agree, Jane. I think they actually cost us $$ to have them. The chicken coop was at least $700.00 and the fence another $300.00 and the nice 10 hole laying box $100.00 :-? so with no profit margin we are are $1100.00 in the hole, keeping them. Silly me! This is no way to make money, that is for sure. It only keeps me busy....
Wow that is so egg-citing to hear. Way to go girls. We have been thinking about getting some Guinea hens. But think is the only action taken so far. We have a pair of resident Red tail hawks, and now a Coopers hawk who has been terrorizing our birds at the bird feeder. So what every birds we would get need to be big to keep from becoming hawk dinner. Those girls of yours sure do get the eggcellant treatment. I'm sure that is why they lay so many eggs for you. I love the names you have for your chicks. Are any of them called the Dixie chicks?
Tooty, get Australorps--our hens weigh in at about 10-12 lbs. each, and can fight off almost anything smaller than a coyote. No Dixie chick names, although I am thinking of naming the next batch after the characters in Steel Magnolias. My husband thinks I ought to name them after current and past heavyweight boxing champions . . . .
Boxing champions - NAH!! They're ladies after all and wouldn't want to be seen duffing each other up. I think the names from Steel Magnolias as far more their thing. I would love to have you as a neighbour as we have to travel about five miles to the nearest farm with free range eggs for sale. Think of the chats we'd have if I came to buy eggs from your girls. :-D
Who knows - maybe one day - stranger things have happened. :-D I could always help you collect the eggs or clean out the girls while we nattered.
