dumb question: does the cold effect egg laying?

[fluffycrow]

Thanks. I am in MA so they are pretty cold hearty breeds. We have been having gloomy weather so not much sunlight but days are getting longer. I have had an EE, an Ameraucana (pure not EE), an OE, and a brahma stop laying. The Brahma is the one that has laid pretty much the entire winter with only a short break so figured she just needed a bit of a break. Think she even laid some during her molt this year. She will be 2 in April so her 2nd winter and she laid her whole first winter as well.

If it helps, my brahma stopped laying completely by mid October, they had been laying like champs up until that point. And mid October is not cold (by normal people standards) here, so I can't say that the cold played a role for them

 

[SamLockwood]

I have had chickens for 3 years. I know they stop or slow down in the winter because of light. I had 1 hen that barely took a break before starting back up. Then some pullets start between Dec/Jan. and one other Hen started back up a couple weeks ago. Like other places we had a drop in temp last week. My hen that started back to laying Jan 1st hasn't laid since Jan 18th (she was laying 1 taking 2 days off laying again), the 1 that barely took a break for the winter decided to stop Jan 16th. oh and another Hen started back up Dec 28th after her break and stopped laying a few days ago (she laid every other day consistently). Then one of my pullets started laying Jan 14th laid the 16th, 18th and nothing since....... I know pullets when they start can be a bit irregular but I haven't had one that started irregular and then just stop.

so wasn't sure if it was the big drop in temps that caused them to stop? I know in extreme heat they can stop so wasn't sure if same for the cold. They didn't seem to do it last year when we had the bitter cold but that may have been just that they hadn't started back up yet (I can't remember).

I also have 1 pullet that laid her first egg Sept 9th and then nothing after was thinking maybe it wasn't her egg (I have cameras in my coop so can see who lays where), well then Jan 3rd she laid again and I was 100% sure it was her and it was the same color as the Sept 9 egg so pretty sure both were her...... I was thinking even though most pullets lay all winter maybe that was why she didn't lay from Sept- Jan. well she hasn't laid anything since. She is perfectly healthy, eats well etc. Is there a chance this is just her getting in sync? She hatched in March so she isn't a "young" pullet. I have a 2 yr old hen that has never laid an egg in her life (yes she is a hen and not sure why she doesn't lay? internal layer maybe?????) and a 3 yr old hen that only lays a handful of eggs a year........ Not sure I want to keep a 3rd one that barely lays but they are my pets and I feel bad getting rid of them for not laying but I also have them for eggs and don't want a coop full of poor layers.........

I haven't noticed temperature as much of a factor. My younger hens stopped laying when they started their molts in October to November. Curiously, the olive eggers started up again as soon as their molt finished, and the legbars started have started up again: one of them in the middle of temperatures being in the teens here.

The heat waves over the summer didn't seem to make them slack off much.

I do make sure to have the waterers full and shady spots for them to go in the summer, and in winter when the temps drop below freezing I give them extra scratch feed and even some lard so they have extra calories to burn to stay warm.

 

[Orpigton]

I have had chickens for 3 years. I know they stop or slow down in the winter because of light. I had 1 hen that barely took a break before starting back up. Then some pullets start between Dec/Jan. and one other Hen started back up a couple weeks ago. Like other places we had a drop in temp last week. My hen that started back to laying Jan 1st hasn't laid since Jan 18th (she was laying 1 taking 2 days off laying again), the 1 that barely took a break for the winter decided to stop Jan 16th. oh and another Hen started back up Dec 28th after her break and stopped laying a few days ago (she laid every other day consistently). Then one of my pullets started laying Jan 14th laid the 16th, 18th and nothing since....... I know pullets when they start can be a bit irregular but I haven't had one that started irregular and then just stop.

so wasn't sure if it was the big drop in temps that caused them to stop? I know in extreme heat they can stop so wasn't sure if same for the cold. They didn't seem to do it last year when we had the bitter cold but that may have been just that they hadn't started back up yet (I can't remember).

I also have 1 pullet that laid her first egg Sept 9th and then nothing after was thinking maybe it wasn't her egg (I have cameras in my coop so can see who lays where), well then Jan 3rd she laid again and I was 100% sure it was her and it was the same color as the Sept 9 egg so pretty sure both were her...... I was thinking even though most pullets lay all winter maybe that was why she didn't lay from Sept- Jan. well she hasn't laid anything since. She is perfectly healthy, eats well etc. Is there a chance this is just her getting in sync? She hatched in March so she isn't a "young" pullet. I have a 2 yr old hen that has never laid an egg in her life (yes she is a hen and not sure why she doesn't lay? internal layer maybe?????) and a 3 yr old hen that only lays a handful of eggs a year........ Not sure I want to keep a 3rd one that barely lays but they are my pets and I feel bad getting rid of them for not laying but I also have them for eggs and don't want a coop full of poor layers.........

Although the cold definitely effects laying, it is the lack of light that has the most detrimental effect. It is odd she has not played in that long but wait until spring before getting rid of her.

 

[junior67]

I have all brahmas makes sence the buff one layed all winter those ones should lay the most in the winter some of my brahmas increase when its colder the reason they would not lay is because the days are shorter for brahmas

It is funny since I had read that and my 2 light Brahmas are one of the first to stop in like Oct and don't start again till mid Feb. Lol.

 

[chickenlover8969]

It is funny since I had read that and my 2 light Brahmas are one of the first to stop in like Oct and don't start again till mid Feb. Lol.

it could be from the daylight shortening or idk were you lives tempature but thats strange myn do not do that lol

 

[chickenlover8969]

It is funny since I had read that and my 2 light Brahmas are one of the first to stop in like Oct and don't start again till mid Feb. Lol.

not a problem rhode island reds lay alot you could get some of those if ur lookin for eggs.

 

[junior67]

it could be from the daylight shortening or idk were you lives tempature but thats strange myn do not do that lol

Think daylight getting shorter. They lay amazing when they lay though.

 

[junior67]

not a problem rhode island reds lay alot you could get some of those if ur lookin for eggs.

I am not a fan of RI reds. Lol. I pick by breeds I like and sometimes egg color, but again has to be a breed I like. I am ok with the breaks. But not sure how ok with having a 3rd that only lays a few times a year....

 

[goats-n-oats]

I posted another thread theorizing why my hens stopped laying in the last couple weeks. They were laying really well when I had them locked indoors during a cold snap, the stopped once they got out to forage again. I suspect an environmental contaminant, specifically air pollution.

I have had chickens for 3 years. I know they stop or slow down in the winter because of light. I had 1 hen that barely took a break before starting back up. Then some pullets start between Dec/Jan. and one other Hen started back up a couple weeks ago. Like other places we had a drop in temp last week. My hen that started back to laying Jan 1st hasn't laid since Jan 18th (she was laying 1 taking 2 days off laying again), the 1 that barely took a break for the winter decided to stop Jan 16th. oh and another Hen started back up Dec 28th after her break and stopped laying a few days ago (she laid every other day consistently). Then one of my pullets started laying Jan 14th laid the 16th, 18th and nothing since....... I know pullets when they start can be a bit irregular but I haven't had one that started irregular and then just stop.

so wasn't sure if it was the big drop in temps that caused them to stop? I know in extreme heat they can stop so wasn't sure if same for the cold. They didn't seem to do it last year when we had the bitter cold but that may have been just that they hadn't started back up yet (I can't remember).

I also have 1 pullet that laid her first egg Sept 9th and then nothing after was thinking maybe it wasn't her egg (I have cameras in my coop so can see who lays where), well then Jan 3rd she laid again and I was 100% sure it was her and it was the same color as the Sept 9 egg so pretty sure both were her...... I was thinking even though most pullets lay all winter maybe that was why she didn't lay from Sept- Jan. well she hasn't laid anything since. She is perfectly healthy, eats well etc. Is there a chance this is just her getting in sync? She hatched in March so she isn't a "young" pullet. I have a 2 yr old hen that has never laid an egg in her life (yes she is a hen and not sure why she doesn't lay? internal layer maybe?????) and a 3 yr old hen that only lays a handful of eggs a year........ Not sure I want to keep a 3rd one that barely lays but they are my pets and I feel bad getting rid of them for not laying but I also have them for eggs and don't want a coop full of poor layers......