If it's so cold you have to wear mittens, you probably won't get eggs from your chickens

Adrian and I never had chickens before so we really don't know much about them. Here's what I knew and why I agreed to keeping some on our property.

• Chickens lay eggs
• Chickens are funny looking and I'm all for fun things
• Eggs are yummy and good protein
• Free eggs don't cost a thing
• It would be fun and educational for our children
• It would be an even better source of food than planting a garden because they would provide us with product year around (or so we thought) 

As the days got shorter and colder and the snow started falling, our egg supply suddenly dwindled. We went from 4 eggs a day to 3, then down to one and some days even none. So one morning, I was craving an egg sandie for brekkie and what do you know? No eggs in the fridge. Again! So I got mad. I mean, we were spending a lot of money on organic feed, we were keeping them clean and comfortable, giving them the liberty of running around on our property all day and they couldn't even supply a small family with eggs? Seriously, try harder! I decided to take advantage of this burning feeling of anger and went out there to confront them.

They saw me storm towards them and I must've been a rather frightening sight, for all but Broody - the head of the sistahood, as they like to call themselves - vanished inside the coop so they wouldn't have to face my wrath. Cowards, the lot of them! So I said, "Hey Broody. What's up with the not laying nonsense? Don't you think considering the amount of money we're spending on class A feed should be motivation enough for you guys to provide us with some product? You're not doing your job, girl, and I want my egg sandwich! Like yesterday!" I guess I must've ruffled her feathers because she got right in my face and rudely interrupted me mid-sentence. "Don't you come to my crib and try blaming this on us. You want eggs? You gots to do your research, sista. You want a carpenter to build you a house, you gots to provide him with the proper tools to do so. He can't build you no house with his hands alone. Now, get away from me before I forget my good manners."

I was kind of confused and yes, I'll admit my confidence was shaken. What did she mean by that? So I retreated, for the moment, and decided to come back with new ammunition. I went back inside and did what everyone does when they seek information of any kind. I started googling. You won't believe what I discovered. Well, people who did their research before purchasing chickens probably will, but the rest of you might understand my surprise. Apparently chickens don't lay eggs in the winter unless you trick them into thinking it's still summer. How about that? I mean, did you guys know that? Apparently they need 14 hours of sunlight for maximum egg production. Hm, I knew they liked to laze around in the sun, so do I, but I didn't quit my job of being a full time mother and left my kids to their own devices just because the days grew shorter. I thought this was rather a matter of laziness, but I was wrong once again.

Chickens produce more eggs in warmer climates because there is a better chance that their offspring is going to survive. If it's too cold, it doesn't really give them a reason to keep laying so their bodies just shut down.

Here are the main reasons your chickens will most likely stop producing:

• Not enough light - days are shorter in the winter and chickens stop laying when they don't get enough light. So if you want them to keep laying, you have to provide them with artificial lighting. Guess we have to get a move on and turn our shed into a chicken coop sooner rather than later, so we can install a timed light and keep eating egg sandwiches.
• Not enough water - water freezes in the winter and the chickens become dehydrated. Eggs are mostly comprised of water, so I guess you can see the problem here. It's an easy fix, though. You can simply buy a heated water dish.
• Inadequate nutrition - Our chickens are free range chickens so on top of the feed we're giving them, they also roam our yard in search of extra calories (insects, clover etc.) and they need a lot of those in order to produce eggs. In the winter they don't get that natural source of calories so you need to provide it for them. They also need lots of calcium which you can provide by giving them some oyster or ground limestone and egg shells (crazy right, but kind of makes sense since the main ingredient in egg shells is calcium carbonate).
• They're molting - molting means the chickens are shedding their old feathers and grow new ones, and this process takes 7-8 weeks on average. The egg production will most likely drop or stop completely because feathers consists 85% of protein, and since they're putting all their effort into producing feathers, they won't be able to keep up the egg production at the same time. 

Now that I did my research and know that the chickens aren't lazy, but we are simply not doing our job to help them produce, I did feel rather bad for yelling at Broody. I have since apologized to her and promised to put some effort into making them more comfortable and provide them with what they need during the long, cold winter. She has forgiven me, even though she did pout longer than necessary and we're on good terms once again. I'll let you know if we can turn this dry spell around, so we can get back to collecting at least 3 eggs a day and to providing our family with fresh, vitamin and protein-rich breakfasts.