It's a Chicken's Life

Few things are as satisfying to see as chickens making contented trills and wandering around the yard. I have greatly enjoyed watching our chickens free-range. I might be washing dishes and look out the window to see them combing the grass for worms and bugs.


Or walking to the garden and the scatter ahead of me.


Unfortunately, they are currently occupying a movable yard with a fresh spot every morning. You see, not one of my chickens is a morning layer. And apparently once they get away from the wagon for the day, they don't take the time to return to it to lay their eggs. One of the ladies appears to prefer to lay her egg sometime between dinner and dusk.

And that handsome rooster? Well, as much as I liked to see him strut his stuff, it turned out that he ate what the ladies laid. And so we ate him. Sad but true. Valerie may have a rooster I can bring home and we'll try to make sure he doesn't develop that bad habit.


Any suggestions for how one goes about getting chickens on a laying schedule?