I thought we were finished with eggs for this year unless Autumn started laying. But Dot has laid two normal sized eggs. The first one was nine days after her tiny egg. The second one was yesterday, four days, after the first one.
Dot’s eggs were just in time for one weekend breakfast after having to buy eggs recently.
It was lovely having our own eggs for breakfast. Shop bought eggs have so much white compared to our bantam eggs.
The moulting continues. Cloud is now dropping loads of tiny feathers. Gold looks really scruffy and has pins around her face and on her head.
Mango and Cloud may finally be ready to go in the chicken shed at dusk. A few nights ago Cloud was in and perched when I checked after the pop hole had closed. Mango was very awkwardly perched on the chicken shed roof. She must have felt less secure without Cloud.
I hoped this would mean Cloud would continue to go in and Mango would eventually follow her. However the weather brightened for a few days and Mango and Cloud continued to settle on top of the nest box closest to the chicken shed.
Last night to my surprise Mango had gone in and Cloud was standing on the nest box whimpering. I assume Mango had gone in at the last moment and Cloud hadn’t made it in time because Mango was standing just inside the chicken shed door. It was probably too dark for her to perch.
This gives me hope that as it gets dark earlier and as it gets colder Mango and Cloud may start going in without my help. I have never had girls take this long to start going in on their own before. I am hopeful that they will start to get the hang of it soon though.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
Glad you are getting some more eggs. For me it’s the other way around at the moment. Out of my 5 girls, Jasmine is now 7 or 8 and doesn’t lay, Pearl always lays softies, Pip very rarely lays and my only two good layers are the barbu de grubbe Bean and my frizzle serama Squeak who have been broody on and off all summer but now they are laying brilliantly! xx
I too have oldest girl Salmon who doesn’t lay. Sugar who is always broody may or may not lay a few more yet. I am hoping that Autumn will turn out to be a good layer once she starts but I have a feeling she may wait until spring now although you never know. It’s good that your two broody girls are now laying well. xx
Well done, Dot! Egg supplies do dwindle and the older girls have now finished – I have 2 aged 8 and 1 aged 7, none of which has laid this year (although they all did last year); I suppose the bonus is that my silkie, Blackie and my goldtop, Goldie were perpetual broodies and did raise chicks together and separately, so they haven’t been clogging up the nest boxes. I suspect Autumn will be a star layer – I remember what a good layer one of your earlier wyandottes was (not Topaz, but I can’t remember the name of her sidekick). Let’s just hope that Autumn does not join the ranks of the serial broodies!
Topaz is more memorable than Sparkle, her sidekick. Topaz only ever laid about two eggs I think and yet was an angry broody and in fact an all round thug. I have since read on forums of other people having the same experience so I was not alone. Sparkle was a good layer and not a broody so I can only hope for that from Autumn. I will take photos soon as Autumn’s comb has now developed the pointy bit but she does seem to be maturing very slowly. That’s okay though, if we have to wait until spring that’s fine. I would be happy if Sugar gave up laying as it’s as you say, they clog up the nest boxes. She also lays so few and it’s a constant round of breaking her out of it. It would be a relief if she joined Salmon as a non laying girl.
Nice suprise to get more eggs, Look like a very nice breakfast.
It was a nice surprise. Every egg we get I expect to be the last for this year. Breakfast was lovely, rolls make an occasional change for weekend breakfast.