Where do eggs come from? Do roosters lay eggs? What are the differences in chickens? Find out all you need to know about chickens, laying eggs and why you should have a rooster with your flock of chickens. Here are 5 Remarkable Facts: Do Roosters Lay Eggs?
Fact 1: Chicken Vocabulary
To begin answering the question “do roosters lay eggs” we need to start with a little bit of an overview of common chicken terms. This will help you understand the basics about chickens and better follow what we are referring to along the way.
Chicken is the common term for the type of bird. Chicken can be used as a general term for the species to refer to both male and females. On occasion, it can also be used to refer only to females, but this is a fairly rare occurrence.
A hen is a female chicken. When you are looking at a flock of chickens, they are usually more numerous. They also tend to be quite plain their looks and coloring. Roosters are male chickens. In a flock, there are generally fewer of them in number. They are much more colorful. When you look at a flock of chickens and see one or two that are brightly colored, these are going to be the roosters. They are beautiful birds that like to strut their good looks. They are also larger in size than the hens. Chick refers to a baby chicken. Chicks can be either male or female. When they are so young, it is extremely difficult to tell what their sex is.
Fact 2: Where Do Eggs Come From?
When hens are between six and seven months old, they can begin to lay eggs. The age at which they start laying, can depend on their maturity, as well as the type of hen that they are. The egg starts off in the hen’s ovary and travels to the oviduct where the shell is formed. The total time it takes her to create an egg and lay it is between twenty-five to twenty-six hours. This brings us to your all-important question: Do Rooster’s Lay Eggs? The simple answer to your question is no, roosters do not lay eggs. Roosters do not have the correct anatomy to be able to perform this biological feat. Hen’s lay the eggs, and roosters fertilize the eggs.
Fact 3: Is A Rooster Required For A Hen To Lay?
If hens lay eggs and roosters fertilize the eggs, your next question might be, are roosters required for hens to lay eggs? Roosters are not required for hens to lay eggs. Hens can lay unfertilized eggs without a rooster being present. An example of this type of egg would be the kind you can buy at a grocery store and enjoy for breakfast. These eggs are ones that are laid by hens alone. The short answer to the question is no, roosters are not required for a hen to lay an egg.
When a hen lays an unfertilized egg, this egg will forever stay an egg. Chicks to not come from an unfertilized egg. A rooster is required if you want to have chicks grow from the eggs.
Fact 4: Can You Still Eat Eggs If You DO HAVE A Rooster?
If you have a rooster who is fertilizing eggs from your hens, can you still eat the eggs? Yes! You sure can eat the eggs. Fertilized eggs must be incubated in order for a chick to grow inside of an egg. If they are incubated for 21 days, then a chick will grow inside. If it is not incubated, it is still very much a delicious breakfast food which you can enjoy.
Fact 5: Should You Have a Rooster Then?
You might be thinking, how should you determine if you want to have a rooster with your flock then, or keep it just hens? There are several good reasons to have a rooster. However, I will also point out that some roosters can be a bit cantankerous. While they have many benefits, you may have to try out a few different roosters in order to find a good match for your own flock.
Roosters Are Natural Protectors
One of the awesome benefits of having a rooster with your hens is that they are natural protectors to your flock. While the hens alone might not stand a good chance against a predator attacking the coop, your rooster will do all he can to defend his home and his ladies. If he locates a threat, he will quite often fight for all he is worth. A flock without a rooster is much more susceptible to attack.
Roosters Are Gorgeous
Roosters are also the most gorgeous birds in the flock. While hens can be a bit plain, sometimes even drab, add a rooster to your flock and his colors bring out the beauty of the rest of your chickens. He can be quite entertaining too, because he knows he is good looking. Just sit back and enjoy watching him prance around flaunting his handsome looks to all the ladies. I was always entertained watching my own roosters’ personalities.
Roosters Allow You To Raise Chicks
Another great reason to have a rooster amongst your flock is if you intend to raise chicks or expand your flock. Having a rooster will allow your hens to lay fertilized eggs and if those eggs are incubated, you will be able to raise your own chicks and watch them grow into chickens.
Hens on average are able to lay one egg a day. They are also only able to productively lay eggs for the first two or three years of their life. Having a rooster to raise your own chicks and expand your flock might be a good idea.
5 Remarkable Facts: Do Roosters Lay Eggs?
In answer to the question, do roosters lay eggs, the short answer is; no they do not. Roosters are the men of the flocks and like much of the world, men do not have babies. Female chickens, or hens are the ones who produce and lay eggs. We have covered 5 Remarkable Facts: Do Roosters Lay Eggs, now it is time to move on to hens, who do lay eggs!
When Do Hen’s Lay The Most Eggs
Hens lay the most eggs when they are young. When a hen is six months old until her first molt, is the timeframe when she will be able to produce eggs the most frequently. After that, she will still lay, but it will not be as often. During her second year of laying, she is likely to produce bigger eggs than she did the first year. But they may not come as often as they did during her first year of laying eggs.
Will Hens Stop Laying Eggs
There are different times when a hen may stop laying eggs. These reasons may vary depending what is going on with the hen and if she is feeling stressed or not.
The first one is when your hen is molting. Molting is when a hen loses her feathers and grows new ones. This often occurs around the time she is eighteen months old. While she is going through molting, her body will be focused on other priorities, and she will not lay many eggs, if any at all.
Another time that your hens may stop laying eggs is if they are not healthy. Chickens can get sick too. It may be an easy fix, or something more serious. If she is not feeling well, then she will likely stop laying eggs for a time.
Sudden life changes also may stress hens out and cause them to stop laying eggs for a while. If she has had a sudden change in scenery, she may stop. Once she does not feel the stress, she should begin laying again.
Lack of daylight is another cause for hens to stop laying or not lay eggs as often. This is a common occurrence during the winter months. If you are able to get them a light, this often helps, but they may still not lay a ton until they are able to get more daylight.
Do Hens Lay In Winter
Hens can lay eggs during the winter. However, since they need daylight to produce eggs, they may not be able to lay as often as they do during the summer when there is more daylight. Winter time in general will probably result in fewer eggs from your flock.
What To Do When Hens Stop Laying
If you are trying to sell eggs to make money, you may want to consider replacing your hens as they get older. The older hens become, the less eggs they will lay. To receive more eggs for the amount of money you invest into their wellbeing, it is a good idea to replace them as they get up in years.
Once a hen reaches a certain age, she will probably stop laying eggs all together. Hens often are sold, up the food chain for stewing hens once they get beyond their prime. Stewing hens have many different purposes. Many chefs like stewing hens to make into broth or just to eat.
How To Encourage Your Hens To Lay
If your hens are not laying as much as they once were, there are a few things you can try to help them begin to lay once again. These are just a few basic ideas to help make sure that your flock is happy and healthy.
First
Start off by making sure your coop is clean. Your chickens might be stressed about the mess their house is in. Try doing a full cleaning of the coop and see if that helps them. You will be surprised at how happy they are to have a freshly cleaned house.
Second
You can also try adding supplements to their food. They may be lacking in some nutrients, so by adding that to their food, it might help them to lay eggs again.
Third
Another important thing to check is to be sure they do not have any intruders inside their coop. When creatures such as snakes or rats invade a chicken’s coops, it makes them very upset and they will quit laying, until they are no longer stressed. The intruders may also be taking the eggs that they do lay. Make sure that their home is safe of invaders and that it is difficult for any to gain access.
Fourth
Light is also important to chickens. They need daylight to produce and lay their eggs. If you are able to increase the light in their coop, they are likely to be happier and as a result lay more eggs.
Fifth
Finally, it is important for chickens to have access to cozy nesting boxes. They feel safe and secure all nestled inside their boxes and end up laying more eggs.
While roosters do not lay eggs themselves, roosters do have many good attributes which we learned about in 5 Remarkable Facts: Do Roosters Lay Eggs?. There are many reasons to have a rooster with your flock. There are also many different delicious dishes that you can make using eggs and chicken. Check out some of our recipes for ideas on what you can make.
What do you like about roosters?
What came first, the chicken or the egg?
Check out this delicious recipe for The Best Loaded Potato Salad! It is so tasty and is a summer must have! Also be sure to try the Greatest All American Pizza recipe! Pizza is always a fantastic go to dinner recipe.
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