Is This a Record!!

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Hi everyone.

I just can't believe it. My 14 week old hybrid pullets have just started to lay their first eggs :shock: :shock:
This morning when I went to check them etc, I found 3 little pullet eggs laid in the corner of their house.
Could this be a record?
I'm so proud of my girls - I bought them as day-olds and they're so friendly.
Just in case you're wondering, they are in their own electric fenced run and kept completely separate to my other birds, so nobody else could sneak in and lay an egg!
The down side is I can't eat the eggs because they are still on growers pellets :roll:
Can't have it all.

Astonished Hippie Chick :D
 
hi there. thats very interesting about your eggs at 14 weeks but i have a question.. why can you not eat them because of the growers pellets ?? :oops: i'm embarrassed to say i didn't know this and i would probably have had the saucepan on as soon as i'd found them :) can someone please tell me the reason. .. cara
 
You can't eat them if the growers pellets contain an anti-coccisidiosis drug (ACS) which is often put into chick crumbs and growers pellets. These drugs are not licenced for use in laying hens - because they aren't supposed to be laying when they are growing :roll: - so there is no testing done on residual levels that gets into the eggs and any risks to our health from this. Chances are it's a very, very small amount but it is untested so the advice is not to eat eggs.

You can hard boil and feed back to the chooks though as a treat ;)

Hens that start laying early will usually be slightly smaller and lay slightly smaller eggs than normal. Personally, I would keep them on the higher protein growers to help their weight / size for now, even if it means sacrificing a few weeks of eggs.
 
Tim i am really worried now,because our laying hens have been eating the growers mix i give to the chicks.they are still eating the layers pellets too.what has been happening is when they are being fed,because they are altogether,including our ducks,they all finish what the chicks leave,and the chicks pick at theirs :shock: :shock: should we be eating the eggs?? and are the hens and ducks going to be affected in any way?? cara
 
Check the label on the feed bag to see if it contains the anti-coccisidiosis drug. It will state it on there. Then you'll know one way or the other.

Also I thought the feed with the anti cocci in should not be given to ducks/ducklings. They have a different feed. I'm sure someone with more duck knowledge will be along and can shed light if there is any to be shed.

I'd keep the growers stuff for the growers and if you can keep them apart for a while longer perhaps till they move over to layers pellets.

You'd need to have bought the feed from a licenced feed merchant if it is anti cocci. Not the sort of stuff you get from a pet shop. Usually only feed merchants etc and they will mention if its anti cocci or not. Many don't even carry the anti cocci stuff these days. Only 1 out of 3 of my local feed merchants do.
 
hi snifter. i checked and it is anti cocci.starting a new run for the chicks this morning :D do you or anybody else out there know how long i should leave it before we start eating eggs from the others again??thanks for the advice :D :D i find this forum so helpful and would be lost without it.so thanks to everybody out there :)
 
No, ducks / ducklings must not be fed any feeds with ACS in them - basically they eat more than chickens so get the incorrect dose.

The problem with this Cara is it is guess-work as to withdrawal periods - If the company tested the drug for laying hens, (it would be very expensive for them) then they would test for residues of the drug in the eggs and if it were above a certain level, they would advise a certain withdrawal period to stay within the legal limits.

As this testing hasn't been done, it's guess work as to whether there is even any significant amount present in the eggs and if there is, how long it takes to reduce.

Vet that prescribe a drug to a laying hen 'off label' -i.e something not specifically licensed for laying hens then the advice generally seems to be 28 days - but that very much depends on the vet and is probably 'to be safe'. I have heard of extremes from no withdrawal to 28 days being advised by different vets.

I think this is something you have to decide upon yourself.

If it were me with my hens, in all honesty I'd probably go for a few days - the chickens getting those eggs boiled and mashed as a treat but I stress this is a guess! :roll:
 
Forgot to say, the two local pet shops I go to normally sell crubs and pellets that include ACS. One even advised me that a local duck breeder who uses their crumbs told them that they were fine for ducklings. Even more worrying is they bag off 5Kg and 10Kg bags for people so they wouldn't know that they contain ACS as it is a clear bag with no ingredients.

I have mentioned this to them 4 or 5 times now and they still keep selling them. :evil:
 
we have separated the chicks now and have decided to wait 10 days before using any eggs.while the hens and ducks would not have been getting great amounts i am so glad i read hippie chicks post because god knows how long this would have gone on for without me knowing the risks :oops: so thanks again....and now i'm off to buy half dozen eggs in the shop :roll: :roll: first time in over a year :(
 
That sounds sensible Cara.

There are so many little things that books don't teach you and it's great having forums for this.
 
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