They’re not doing themselves any favours!
By Fleur
@Fleura (34957)
United Kingdom
March 17, 2017 7:59am CST
From the end of November until the start of this month my poor girls have been confined to barracks due to regulations intended to limit the spread of the latest strain of avian ‘flu. They were allowed into their run, so they did have space to scratch around outside, stretch their wings and generally move about comfortably, but nevertheless it wasn’t the manner of life to which they had become accustomed!
Now the regulations have been relaxed somewhat so I could allow them out into a bigger area. This is a patch of short grass with a large bush at one end. Although they do like to run about on the grass flapping their wings, their favourite feature is the bush, and this is where they spend most of their time, hidden away underneath it scratching at the dead leaves and dust-bathing in the dry earth.
All the time they were shut in they regularly laid 3 or 4 eggs a day between the 5 of them. Once they were allowed out the output suddenly dropped to one or two. Very mysterious! Could the excitement have put them off laying? Or were they hiding eggs somewhere under the bush?
I have grovelled about under that bush every day and found nothing, so the last two days I decided to keep them in for longer in the mornings and see what happened. Sure enough, there were 3 eggs yesterday and 4 the day before.
It’s a mystery where they could be laying any extra eggs but obviously it doesn’t encourage me to let them all out first thing in the mornings! They’re not doing themselves any favours with this magical disappearing egg trick!
All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2017.
8 people like this
11 responses
@LadyDuck (502343)
• Italy
17 Mar 17
@Fleura I have observed them when I spent my vacation in the farm house of my grandparents. The small country mice have also entered a Parmesan from a small hole they made under the whole cheese and they have emptied it leaving the exterior intact.
1 person likes this
@mohdovi (1087)
•
17 Mar 17
@Fleura may be someone is stealing,
few year back i also have few girls and they are hiding egg on the top of the boundary wall, one day my sister caught one sitting there & after reaching on the top i find lots of eggs. 
thats why i said see some where on top
thats why i said see some where on top1 person likes this
@AbbyGreenhill (45490)
• United States
17 Mar 17
My grandparents had chicken on the farm -- all I remember is the horrid smell......your chicken are pretty.
1 person likes this
@AbbyGreenhill (45490)
• United States
18 Mar 17
@Fleura Don't forget I'm talking two farmers back in the 50's...things have changed since then - but we have been in chicken houses in TN that stink to high heaven! We almost bought property near one but we couldn't stand the smell. I am old enough to know how to keep humans clean!
1 person likes this
@Fleura (34957)
• United Kingdom
18 Mar 17
@AbbyGreenhill Things have changed, but not always for the better. There was an intensive chicken farm in the village where I grew up - still is in fact - and yes the smell is horrible. We al know it's there and the local farmers spread the manure on their fields but I have never seen a single chicken, they are totally enclosed.
In the UK at present there is a lot more enthusiasm for free-range eggs, but battery chicken farms still exist and there seems to be less consumer focus on raising chickens to eat so they are mainly still farmed intensively.
@Fleura (34957)
• United Kingdom
18 Mar 17
I know, the disease regulations mean that free range hens have been kept in for longer than is allowable to still call them free range. I thought the industry was supposed to have come up with some solution to that though, with stickers to explain the labelling or something?
@PainsOnSlate (21845)
• Canada
19 Mar 17
My daughters girls would go back into the pen to lay their eggs, did you find them yet?
1 person likes this
@Fleura (34957)
• United Kingdom
19 Mar 17
No, it's a mystery! If I keep them in for longer, I get more eggs (4 today), so it suggests that if I let them out early, one or two of them are laying the eggs somewhere else. But I've looked in the only possible places and found nothing.
1 person likes this
@BelleStarr (61463)
• United States
17 Mar 17
That does seem rather strange doesn't it? I wonder what the reason is.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
17 Mar 17
Those girls really should just lay their eggs in their nesting boxes before heading out to forage.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381960)
• Rockingham, Australia
17 Mar 17
I wonder if they are laying under the bush and a rat is stealing them. Sometimes hens eat their eggs but you would have seen evidence of this if this is what is happening. I hope you're able to solve the mystery - if there is one. 
1 person likes this
@Fleura (34957)
• United Kingdom
17 Mar 17
I wondered if something had been stealing the eggs, we've had magpies take them before but they just break the eggs and eat the contents, so the shells would be left. No sign of anything like that. And if a bigger animal like a fox got in and took the eggs - well it would be more likely to take the chickens instead!
1 person likes this
