2 yrs old and no eggs!

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Buffy Orp

Buffy Orp

In the Brooder
5 Years
Mar 16, 2014
14
0
22
I currently have 12 hens. A combo of RIR's, Buff Orps (my faves), Ameraucanas and one Red Range that never made it to the freezer. one the average, I am lucky to get 2 eggs a day. Ten of them are 2-1/2 yo and 2 are 1-1/2 yo. they have been doing this since spring. it's like they never adjusted to longer days. here's a dumb question... most people say they are going "broody". what, actually, is that? do they get over it or is it like a woman going through menopause?
 
When a hen goes broody she wants to sit on eggs and hatch chicks. It is a hormonal change that stops when the chicks are hatched. there are a few ways to stop broodiness, a search will find many threads related to that. Broody hens sit obsessively on a nest, with or without eggs, and do not move around or socialize - sometimes they will not even eat.

Things to consider for your birds would be
- Adequate diet - a good-quality layer feed, with minimal supplementation of treats, scratch or other stuff.
- Adequate calcium - keep oyster shell or other calcium source always available.
- deworming - birds can become parasitized without you seeing anything different about how they look or act

I am sure others will have further suggestions for you.
 
Last edited:
I agree with most of what 1muttsfan said. The only exception is that calcium won't stimulate ovulation, it only replaces the calcium in the medullary bone after an egg shell is formed.
On the other hand, adequate protein (more accurately, amino acids) will help ovulation in healthy birds.

Those birds should all lay well in spring and summer. I thought that this is the perfect time of year and perfect age for them to not lay but since you said it has been going on all summer then the problem isn't light or age.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/450/several-reasons-why-your-hens-may-stop-laying-eggs/
 
Ok, thanks. I am not feeding them anything different than what I have all along but maybe I should cut out the scratch grains. I started to free range them but lost 5 to our huskies that we got almost 2 years ago. Very devastating. so now I keep them all in a 15'x15' area and their coop which is 10'x15'. I do know that some of the hens will peck or eat the eggs and I have caught them "raiding" the nests. I even find some eggs with a hole pecked in them. but I never see them in their nesting boxes other than one every now and then. so I really don't know what its making them do this.
 
Buffy Orp said:
I currently have 12 hens. A combo of RIR's, Buff Orps (my faves), Ameraucanas and one Red Range that never made it to the freezer. one the average, I am lucky to get 2 eggs a day. Ten of them are 2-1/2 yo and 2 are 1-1/2 yo. they have been doing this since spring. it's like they never adjusted to longer days. here's a dumb question... most people say they are going "broody". what, actually, is that? do they get over it or is it like a woman going through menopause?
Click to expand...
I do occasionally give them some beef as we raise our own beef. so they do get somw protein but I think I need to change their feed. I have been feeding them Dumor from Tractor Supply but maybe Layeena from Purina would be better? any suggestions?
 
If I wasn't getting any eggs, I wouldn't feed layer feed at all. It is too high in calcium for non-layers. I would feed a grower or all flock feed that is 18+% protein, 1%% calcium and cut out all the scratch grains. If you get the occasional egg you can provide oyster shell in a separate container.
You have to figure out the egg eater problem which is a completely different issue than them not laying.
 
Thank you both for your advice. I will try both ideas to see if that helps. I remember the first winter after they started to lay eggs, they laid all the way through winter, non-stop. I used a heat lamp and they loved it. but the past winter wasn't as good then in the spring it got worse. So, I will try this and see what I can do to take care of both issues. thank you!
 
even when it's below freezing? I was reading a book that said providing heat for my chickens when it's really cold out is a good thing. they seem to like it as the congregate under the heat.
 

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