The Cottage Smallholder

Hi Clem,

Welcome to the forum. 

As to your hens; they will be very stressed as they are such creatures of habit & just hate any deviation from it. So now they have both a new owner, new location & maybe a difference in diet. Did you check with the previous owner about what they were fed & when. If you want to change this you should do it gradually. I think it might be an idea to feed them at least some pelleted food & to give them mixed corn scratch at the end of the afternoon so they have full crops to go to sleep with, especially now winter is coming; they use a lot of energy keeping warm in the winter. 

How old are the pullets (female chickens under one year old)? If they are still teenagers & the older hen was their broody she may not have started laying again yet after hatching a brood of chicks & caring for them. They tend to moult & have a rest while the days are short & start laying again in the new year. Egg laying is triggered by day-length & light.

Do you know what breed they are & did you buy them from from a proper breeder or someone you can trust ? How old is the older hen?  I know I'm asking a lot of questions but certain breeds are not good layers & some cross-breeds are bred for laying & will do so throughout the winter.

Here are some useful sites for information. The 2ND & 3RD are in North America but are full of useful info; you have to join them to ask questions.

http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/

Hope this helps.

Good luck.  

Nadine /aka Hattie

Hi Clem,

I think handling chickens is a good idea, it makes it a lot easier when & if you have to deal with some injury etc. My lot are not keen on being picked up & cuddled but I think that is because I have about 20 of them so they have their own community. I think the fewer you have the more they need humans for company.

The reason I feed pellets as well as free-ranging them in my garden is then I know they are getting a balanced diet¦..they don't have to eat it. In fact I have some hens that refuse to eat pellets & will only eat mixed corn. Your birds are obviously from a strain that have been bought up for generations to free range, that's fine if there is enough wild food all year round.

I have another question for you¦¦are you sure that all your young ones are female??? Have you got a good photo of them that you could post here? I would love to see what a Cypriot village hen looks like......I'm just nosey !!  

Janet is very kind about my chicken knowledge but I am no expert¦.I just spend a lot of time watching them as I find them very interesting. I am no good when it comes to their illnesses as in nearly ten years of keeping them I have not had to deal with any (fingers crossed for the future).