How To Tell If A Hen Is Laying

After all, you cannot go check and see who makes eggs each day. This is an easy little test. Look at the hen's legs. The hen whose legs are yellow is NOT laying. When a new flock of hens starts laying, some mature and lay sooner than others. The hens laying will have silvery-greenish-grayish legs. These legs are pretty horrifying when you first see them. Chickens are supposed to have yellow feet and legs! Right?

As hens get older and quit laying or quit laying for any reason, their leg color becomes yellow once again. If you don't want to feed hard-bought food to a non-laying hen, just look at the feet.

Another one of life's little mysteries solved!

This physical trait of hens can save you money. If you don't want to feed a hen who is not producing, you can cull the flock by looking at legs. You will save money on feed or get other hens to produce eggs. Culling non-producing hens is parsimony at its finest.

Since I only have four hens, I doubt if I will cull any of them unless I really need to stew a hen for food. If I had a larger flock, I would have the non-layers for dinner. I have no qualms about eating food animals I raise.

Fancy is the only hen who lives here at the present that I would not eat. I love all four of them, but she is special. She loves me. Okay, maybe the others love me, too, but their place is not as secure.

Could you eat your hens or other cattle/animals you raise? Why not?