By: Curtis Utley Jefferson County Extension Agent
So you have a few chickens and you are interested to know who is laying and who is ready for the stew pot. How do you decide? There are a few different ways to determine a hen’s productivity and more importantly if she is in production. The simplest way to determine who is in production is by watching who goes into an empty nesting box and leaves an egg behind after vacating. No brainier right? Well, who has time to sit and watch hens all day long – I don’t. The next way to determine productivity is to pick up individual hens and inspect their vents which should be big loose and moist if in production and small dry and tight if not in production. Blow the downy feathers away with a whistle to inspect the condition of the vent.
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| The vent of a productive hen |
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| Measuring width between pelvic bones |
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| Measuring width between pelvic bones and the keel bone |
If you are raising a yellow-skinned breed you can determine how many eggs your hen has laid in a given year by inspecting various parts of the body for pigment loss. The yellow pigment {Caratin} is redistributed from the skin to the egg yolks of productive hens and this occurs in a very specific order. The first pigment lost is from around the vent; the last pigment lost is from the hock joints and the tops of the toes. Pigment is regained during the molting cycle, so the most productive hens (those hens that also molt quickly) may not completely regain their pigment in all body parts. Pigment is gained back in the reverse order of loss.
The order in which pigment is lost from laying hens.
- Vent
- Eye ring
- Ear lobe
- Beak, from the corner of the mouth to the tip
- Bottom of the foot
- Shanks, from front, then back and sides
- Hocks and tops of toes
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| Bleached out corner of beak of productive hen |
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| Yellow pigment visible at corner of beak of unproductive hen |
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| Bleached out bottom of foot of productive hen |
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| Yellow pigment remains on foot pad of unproductive hen |
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| Bleached out shank of productive hen |
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| Yellow pigment visible in the shank of a unproductive hen |
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| Tops of toes of a productive hen |
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| Tops of toes of an unproductive hen |
| Pigmented Body Area | Egg Production | Weeks of production |
| Vent | 0-10 | 0-2 Weeks |
| Eye Ring | 8-12 | 2-2.5 Weeks |
| Ear lobe | 10-15 | 2.5-3 Weeks |
| Beak | 35 | 5-8 Weeks |
| Bottom of Feet | 68 | 10-15 Weeks |
| Entire Shank | 159 | 20-26 Weeks |
| Hocks and top of toes | 175-180 | 30 Weeks + |
Lastly it may seem strange but your most productive hens are going to look ratty and pale, bright and active. The hens with perfect feathers and stunning colors are just pretty and not your true working girls.
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| This productive hen has a bright, alert, round eye and broken, worn and ruffled feathers |