Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
the light on in the early morning and off just before sunset. This last will keep the birds
from being suddenly left in the dark.
A Protein Fix
You can also control the timing of the laying cycle to some degree by cutting down on
the percentage of protein in the feed. Thin the feed ration with corn or other scratch
grains that the birds will eat. This diluted feed with less protein slows down the devel-
opment process after a week or two of use.
If you choose to try to manipulate the laying cycle to suit your purposes rather than
allowing the birds to begin when they are ready, keep in mind that the sooner hens start
to lay, the sooner they will become exhausted. Laying, while natural, is stressful, and
the more stress their bodies endure before they are truly prepared, the sooner egg pro-
duction will slow in subsequent years, causing you to have to replace your flock every
year instead of every other year. Allowing them to gradually grow into their life cycle
of laying and reproduction will give them a chance to develop a good strong immune
system and good strong bones.
ENERGY-SAVING BULBS PROBLEMATIC
Standard-wattage incandescent light bulbs are becoming unavailable as society fo-
cuses on ways to save energy. In our area, we find “Soft White” and lower-wattage
bulbs in the stores now. These work fine to provide light, but not heat, for young
birds.
Increasingly, we find screw-in florescent bulbs available on the shelves of our loc-
al stores. These provide adequate light if you increase the wattage a bit over that of
the standard incandescent bulb, but fluorescents also present safety problems if they
break. More than one fire has started when a fluorescent bulb broke and the ballast
arced. Fluorescent bulbs work better in houses and other places where poultry cannot
fly up and break them.
Halogen bulbs are acceptable lighting for poultry but are rather pricey and should
be protected in some fashion from poultry breaking them.
During Molting
It is normal for chickens to
molt
— lose their fathers and grow new ones — once a year.
This typically happens in the fall as the days become shorter in length. The reduction in
light triggers molting, which, in turn, triggers the cessation of egg laying; this makes the
fall months the lowest point of egg production during the year. Spring-hatched chicks
