2 chickens stopped laying completely

[shellie003]

Hi! we have 2 hens that we got from a friend this summer that we think are just over a year old or so. 1 is a Andalusian and 1 is a Americauna mix. They laid about every other day in the summer/fall. Soon as the temp dropped and the days became shorter they have stopped laying completely. I thought they could be molting because there were tons of feathers around in the coop in fall which seemed to be theirs. They looked sort of scraggly but not too bad. That was at least during early Sept. I have not seen the abundance of feathers for awhile now but still no eggs from either of them. We would know because the Andalusian lays white eggs she is the only one that lays white ones, and the Americauna lays a terra cotta colored egg. They don't look sick or appear to be. They seem to be eating good and messing around with the other hens. My question is, do they "normally" stop altogether laying eggs in winter? What do you think is going on?

Thanks for your help!!!

 

[buzymom13]

Shorter days means less light means fewer eggs. If you want them to lay more often then some people put a light in the coop to extend the hours of daylight. I have been thinking about this off and on but haven't tried it yet. I do know you have to be careful to make sure the light isn't making things too hot and watch that the birds can't knock into the light or knock it down. If they do it could start a fire or burn a chicken... bad news.

Some people have used LED lights/christmas lights or solar lights. I'm told that it only has to be about 40 or 60 watt amounts. Hope this helps.

I personally haven't tried the extra light but I have started giving my hens a half a head of cabbage or a butternut squash each day. I have also removed 2 unruly teen roos and have gone from 2 or 3 eggs a day to 5 to 7 eggs a day from 8 laying hens.

Just what has worked for me.

Good Luck!

 

[shellie003]

Anyone else have any ideas?? Do they stop laying altogether in winter if they don't have enough light????