Care & Feeding of Laying Hens

Keeping a few chickens in your backyard garden can be a fulfilling hobby; they are fun, intelligent and loving -- and a healthy laying hen can produce up to five eggs per week. Many urban areas have restrictions against keeping roosters within city limits, but allow garden hens. Contact your local animal control office to find out about flock size limits or other restrictions before caring for laying hens.

  1. Housing

    • Hens require comfortable, protective shelters. A shed or a coop that provides air flow during warm months and warmth during the winter, offers protection from predators, and above-ground nesting areas are available for purchase or building from free plans available on the Internet. Plan to provide at least 3 square feet of room per hen inside the coop. Line the coop with pine shavings, straw or peanut hulls for the hens to use as bedding and to absorb moisture from their droppings, and replace frequently.

    Food

    • Hen food should contain at least 15 percent to 20 percent protein. Most commercial laying feed contains adequate protein. Offer your chickens variety in their diet with grains, vegetables or grass, but avoid overfeeding them these treats as they will eat them until they are overfull. Don't allow fresh food to rot inside the chicken coop or it will attract rats and insects.

    Water

    • Hens need plenty of water to stay healthy, but will only drink enough water if the water is cool -- not cold or warm -- and fresh. Install waterers so they are about shoulder-height to the hens, and replace water at least twice a day.

    Health

    • Most diseases can be prevented by changing litter regularly, providing fresh food and water, removing spoiled food promptly, and not over-crowding hens in the coop. There are a number of infectious diseases that can afflict hens; if your hen appears listless, looses feathers outside normal winter-time molting or otherwise exhibits unusual behavior, contact your veterinarian immediately.

    Egg Production

    • Ensure that there is at least one nest for every four hens, situated above ground on a roost. Check for eggs during warm months two to three times daily. Don't worry if egg production slows or ceases during the wintertime; this is a normal resting time for laying hens. They will molt -- replace their feathers -- during winter, as well. Egg production will naturally resume when spring returns.