My theory on why my hens suddenly stopped laying

[Penpal]

If they caused the problem they are responsible for fixing it. If you don't trust the EPA, then contact the office of your Congressman/woman.

 

[goats-n-oats]

Im not sure, I would guess it has to do with one of the following- there is a lot of oil drilling in this area, the authorities don't want the aquifer to get polluted, or the water rights were sold to a private organization.

You're the second person I heard of recently that can't drill a decent well. Why don't they allow drilling into the aquifer?

 

[goats-n-oats]

Hey.all, to follow up, there's been a moderate increase in egg production in the past three days (from 1.5 doz/day to 3.5 doz and today an ISA Brown laid a jumbo egg for the first time in a while). I've read several threads here suggesting that their hormonal cycles do this (stop laying) every year. Anyway here's what I did with the flock:
-Brought them indoors with a HEPA filter, except for an hour breather outdoors at sunset
-Added turmeric, oregano oil, apple cider vinegar, activated charcoal, cayenne pepper to their feed and water
-Mixed in dry lentils with their food this morning
-And it looks like they may have eaten an entire bottle of inositol supplements (I found the empty container on the coop floor.)

 

[aart]

Hey.all, to follow up, there's been a moderate increase in egg production in the past three days (from 1.5 doz/day to 3.5 doz and today an ISA Brown laid a jumbo egg for the first time in a while). I've read several threads here suggesting that their hormonal cycles do this (stop laying) every year. Anyway here's what I did with the flock:
-Brought them indoors with a HEPA filter, except for an hour breather outdoors at sunset
-Added turmeric, oregano oil, apple cider vinegar, activated charcoal, cayenne pepper to their feed and water
-Mixed in dry lentils with their food this morning
-And it looks like they may have eaten an entire bottle of inositol supplements (I found the empty container on the coop floor.)

So with all those 'solutions' you have no way of knowing which one (if any) solved the problem?

Curious, how/where do you bring 175 chicken inside with HEPA filtration?

 

[goats-n-oats]

So with all those 'solutions' you have no way of knowing which one (if any) solved the problem?

Curious, how/where do you bring 175 chicken inside with HEPA filtration?

Unfortunately my experiment was not so scientific as to know which part worked.
The chickens all roost inside the barn; they know to come in at night. I just didn't open the garage door for them the next day until 4pm. They went out then came back in to roost at 5:30pm-ish when the sun set. 40-50 chickens stay indoors all day anyway; they have been laying pretty steady at 75% full production.

 

[goats-n-oats]

Hi all, I just wanted to follow up about this after some more experimentation. My flock has been mostly indoors the past couple of weeks, and production is back to where it was in January, 5-6 dozen a day. There are still a lot of small to medium sized eggs. I stopped giving them supplements after the initial posts here. I recommended lentils to a friend of mine who lives even closer to the East Palestine accident. Her coop opens fully to the outdoors so a HEPA filter was not an option. She said she tried 4 cups of dry lentils a day and after a week her flock resumed normal production, and even pullets started laying. She was really excited and told her friends about it. @MamaPoult

 

[Molpet]

dry lentils

were these cooked? uncooked lentils are supposed to have a compound called phytohaemagglutinin a lectin, that is toxic to people and chickens. cooked or sprouted is supposed to be ok

 

[MamaPoult]

Hi all, I just wanted to follow up about this after some more experimentation. My flock has been mostly indoors the past couple of weeks, and production is back to where it was in January, 5-6 dozen a day. There are still a lot of small to medium sized eggs. I stopped giving them supplements after the initial posts here. I recommended lentils to a friend of mine who lives even closer to the East Palestine accident. Her coop opens fully to the outdoors so a HEPA filter was not an option. She said she tried 4 cups of dry lentils a day and after a week her flock resumed normal production, and even pullets started laying. She was really excited and told her friends about it. @MamaPoult

That's great! This trick has saved my butt more than once I am super glad that it worked for her! I dont think she should continue to feed them uncooked like the comment below yours said but who knows I guess they have not died yet. Online info can be sketchy anyways.

 

[3 Dog Ranch]

My hens were laying very well during the winter, then in the last couple of weeks, since the weather got warmer, egg size has steadily decreased, as well as production, from 6 dozen jumbo eggs per day to 2 dozen small eggs per day. My flock includes 175 chickens ages 6 months to 3 years. My indoor hens are still laying at about 75%, as well as my ducks and quails are laying at 100%. (Incidentally, my rabbits are spontaneously aborting, and my pair of 2yo in-tact Anatolian shepherds have never conceived.) I tried bringing the flock back indoors for a day, and set up a HEPA filter indoors. Production increased to 4 dozen. Let the flock back out yesterday, production dropped to 2 dozen.

I googled 'which chemicals affect chickens but not ducks' and this was the result: https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/poisonings/poisonings-in-poultry#v87394350 : Dioxin Poisoning in Poultry Dioxin is a fat contaminant of poultry feeds. In young pullets, it decreases growth, delays sexual development, and increases mortality rates. Hatchability is decreased. Turkeys and ducks are less susceptible than chickens. Signs of intoxication include ruffled feathers, droopiness, and dyspnea. Associated lesions include ascites and hydropericardium, liver necrosis, subepicardial hemorrhage, and bile duct hyperplasia.

My farm is located about 100 miles from the East Palestine train derailment site from 02/2023. Large quantities of vinyl chloride were burned, which releases dioxin.

I am going to try adding activated charcoal pellets to their feed, and turmeric powder to their water, to detox.

Go ahead and call me a conspiracy theorist, I don't care. DYOR (Do your own research.)

I’m totally on board with you! Between the water, food, air, and animals “ they” are going to kill us!! Unviable eggs are every where!! Vaccines.... what??

 

[MamaPoult]

My hens were laying very well during the winter, then in the last couple of weeks, since the weather got warmer, egg size has steadily decreased, as well as production, from 6 dozen jumbo eggs per day to 2 dozen small eggs per day. My flock includes 175 chickens ages 6 months to 3 years. My indoor hens are still laying at about 75%, as well as my ducks and quails are laying at 100%. (Incidentally, my rabbits are spontaneously aborting, and my pair of 2yo in-tact Anatolian shepherds have never conceived.) I tried bringing the flock back indoors for a day, and set up a HEPA filter indoors. Production increased to 4 dozen. Let the flock back out yesterday, production dropped to 2 dozen.

I googled 'which chemicals affect chickens but not ducks' and this was the result: https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/poisonings/poisonings-in-poultry#v87394350 : Dioxin Poisoning in Poultry Dioxin is a fat contaminant of poultry feeds. In young pullets, it decreases growth, delays sexual development, and increases mortality rates. Hatchability is decreased. Turkeys and ducks are less susceptible than chickens. Signs of intoxication include ruffled feathers, droopiness, and dyspnea. Associated lesions include ascites and hydropericardium, liver necrosis, subepicardial hemorrhage, and bile duct hyperplasia.

My farm is located about 100 miles from the East Palestine train derailment site from 02/2023. Large quantities of vinyl chloride were burned, which releases dioxin.

I am going to try adding activated charcoal pellets to their feed, and turmeric powder to their water, to detox.

Go ahead and call me a conspiracy theorist, I don't care. DYOR (Do your own research.)

t
Holy cow! The struggle is real! I am sorry you have to deal with this! Best of luck and I hope you get your girls back on track. And I dont think your a "conspiracy theorist".