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Forced molting typically involves the removal of food and/or water from poultry for an extended period of time to reinvigorate egg-laying. Forced molting, sometimes known as induced molting, is the practice by some poultry industries of artificially provoking a flock to molt simultaneously, typically by withdrawing food for 7–14 days and sometimes also withdrawing water for an extended period.
Egg prices have steadily risen in recent months due to a spike in bird flu; outbreaks in egg-laying chickens are affecting the national supply, driving up costs.
While a single specific cause is unknown, chronic egg laying is believed to be triggered by hormonal imbalances influenced by a series of external factors. [1] As in the domestic chicken, female parrots are capable of producing eggs without the involvement of a male – it is a biological process that may be triggered by environmental cues such as day length (days becoming longer, indicating ...
A common practice among hatcheries for egg-laying hens is the culling of newly hatched male chicks since they do not lay eggs and do not grow fast enough to be profitable for meat. There are plans to more ethically destroy the eggs before the chicks are hatched, using "in-ovo" sex determination.
Egg laying hens require 4 grams per day of calcium of which 2 grams are used in the egg. Oyster shells are often used as a source of dietary calcium. [4] Certain diets also require the use of grit, tiny rocks such as pieces of granite, in the feed. Grit aids in digestion by grinding food as it passes through the gizzard.
More than 145 million chickens, turkeys and other birds have been slaughtered since the current outbreak began, with the vast majority of them being egg-laying chickens. Cage-free egg laws in 10 states may also be responsible for some supply disruptions and price increases. The laws set minimum space for chickens or cage-free requirements for ...
To help achieve this, there has been intense artificial selection for non-broodiness in commercial egg laying chickens and parent stock of poultry. As a result of this artificial selection, broodiness has been reduced to very low levels in present-day breeds of commercial fowl, both among egg-laying and meat-producing breeds. [citation needed]
Behind rising egg prices and shortages is a strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), known as H5N1, that killed 13.2 million commercial egg-laying hens in the month of December alone ...