1 egg from 1 hen out of 13 questions

[asthrngal89]

My father has 13 barred rock hens one is laying after they all molted about the same time , but only one hen is laying. I have 6 "pet" chickens in the neighboring coop and I tend to spoil his as well. Dad thinks im nuts..but I found that he doesnt always keep the feeder full and so I do...thats when one hen started laying an egg a day..I told him that if you feed them good keep them happy they will keep you happy! Lol but is there anything I can do to get the others to start laying with her? Or is it just whenever they decide to kind of thing? Usually his hens produce way more than we could ever eat in eggs and we give them away.. thanks in advance for any advice or help

 

[sourland]

As the day length approaches 14 hours of light per day, the egg production will also increase. Yep, proper feeding is necessary for optimum egg production.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Since you mention they just finished molting I would hazard a guess that they are 18+ months old and will be entering their second or later laying cycle? This time of year it can take longer for production to pick back up after a molt/lay-off due to the shorter hours of daylight. If they are short on nutrients that can also set back production. What is the feed they are on and how much is your father feeding during the times the feeder is no kept full for free feeding? Is good, clean water always available to them?

 

[ThePRfan]

It could be the way you feed your hens.
The more you feed,the fatter they get.From my experience,fat birds dont lau well,or not at all.

When birds molt,they tend to lose a bunch of feathers,so they take months to grow back.
It is often very uncomfortable stage for them,this may be your probablu...don't forget,it may be about2 or 3 months before you get eggs.

Have you had any recent dog attacks,birds of prey attack,etc?
Do you feed scraps,and what are they?
Are they on any medication(s)?

 

[asthrngal89]

They are barred rocks and he doesnt care for them as much as me I recently put their waterer up on cement blocks to keep the dirt out of it and hung the feeder because of the same problems they do get scraps probably once a week id say I believe he has had them for two years now , no dogs bothering them or anything like that they have a very secure setup and I believe the feed is 16% laying pellets I try to give them greens about three times a week along with mine from our garden like mustard and collard greens

 

[asthrngal89]

No medications but they did get wormed about a month ago ...he thought I was crazy when I told him he should and replied..you dont worm chickens!!! Lol

 

[asthrngal89]

Scraps usually are left over cooked rice or stale bread maybe corn or canned veggies that didnt get eaten but dont give them scraps that often