4 Hens- 1 egg per day...at the end of my rope

[aart]

Another thought is, you haven't seen any evidence of broken eggs or anything correct? Egg eating is also a possibility,

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/one-hen-eating-anothers-egg-before-we-can-get-it.1303549/

How long since the probiotic and worming?
Are you sure the feed is fresh?
Look at mfg date on nutrition tag or sew strip on bottom of bag.

Where did you get birds?
Are you positive of their age?

Some birds are 'lemons'...
....and like Blooie sez: "they ain't pez dispensers".

Just some thoughts.

 

[Leeab]

Background on the hens: we got them at about 5 months old. 2 of them were laying and continued to for about a week or so, then 3 of them were and was consistent for a few days. then all of them stopped for almost a week. (breeds: 2 barred rocks, 2 red sex links)

Now they are about 8-9 months old. only one of them is laying(barred rock) and that has been going on for almost a month. One other is laying blobs of egg white with no shell every few days or so but that is it.

I have asked for advice on here several times, and have followed a lot of it. they have been wormed, given probiotic, I changed their feed to Nutrena Naturewise hearty hen 18% protein pellets all day every day, and oyster shell is available to them. my husband is ready to cull the ones not laying, and I cant defend them much longer. Advice??

Might b laying In another area, If you let them out. If not, check for pests eating at night.

 

[Sarah C]

Background on the hens: we got them at about 5 months old. 2 of them were laying and continued to for about a week or so, then 3 of them were and was consistent for a few days. then all of them stopped for almost a week. (breeds: 2 barred rocks, 2 red sex links)

Now they are about 8-9 months old. only one of them is laying(barred rock) and that has been going on for almost a month. One other is laying blobs of egg white with no shell every few days or so but that is it.

I have asked for advice on here several times, and have followed a lot of it. they have been wormed, given probiotic, I changed their feed to Nutrena Naturewise hearty hen 18% protein pellets all day every day, and oyster shell is available to them. my husband is ready to cull the ones not laying, and I cant defend them much longer. Advice??

You mention they're out in the yard - one of mine once laid a dozen eggs in a very hidden spot. Might check.

 

[Leeab]

Might b laying In another area, If you let them out. If not, check for pests eating at night. Stress. Plenty of food and water all times.. don’t b afraid to give them there one she’ll back, and table scraps.. they love them..

 

[Chelsa'sChicks]

Are they getting enough protein along with calcium? I will often just give my hens deli turkey or meat.. I get a lot of eggs the next day. If your birds are molting (changing feathers) then they will not make eggs too Unless they are getting enough Calcium and Protein as it takes both of these to make both feathers and eggs. Not sure if someone said this already..

 

[Rousha Gauthier]

Background on the hens: we got them at about 5 months old. 2 of them were laying and continued to for about a week or so, then 3 of them were and was consistent for a few days. then all of them stopped for almost a week. (breeds: 2 barred rocks, 2 red sex links)

Now they are about 8-9 months old. only one of them is laying(barred rock) and that has been going on for almost a month. One other is laying blobs of egg white with no shell every few days or so but that is it.

I have asked for advice on here several times, and have followed a lot of it. they have been wormed, given probiotic, I changed their feed to Nutrena Naturewise hearty hen 18% protein pellets all day every day, and oyster shell is available to them. my husband is ready to cull the ones not laying, and I cant defend them much longer. Advice??

 

[Rousha Gauthier]

I have 12 hens right now and I’m getting anywhere from 3-6 eggs a day, not many with the amount of hens I have. If they aren’t laying could be they’re moulting but it’s really the wrong time of year for that. Depending on where you are, maybe it’s a bit too hot for them? Try cooking them down a little and see if that doesn’t help

 

[fanniefarmer]

Good morning. I just ran across this thread and would like to throw in my two cents worth. I believe you have done everything you can do but there’s a catch; some things need to be done differently. I made the mistake of getting a huge bag of oyster shell and throwing generous amounts out and waiting for my chickens to finish it all before I put anymore out. !!! They don’t eat some sizes of the OS so when they ran out of the size they wanted they were no longer getting any benefit from it. You could try throwing out a big handful or so each day and watch to see if they are actively going for it. I never found OS to be that great of a calcium source for this reason. I use the fine calcium grit. It’s like very fine sand. I sprinkle handfuls over their feed. As soon as I changed to this method I no longer saw cracked shells from them just stepping on them in the nest box. Also when I collect them, no more easily cracked eggs. One more suggestion for the road. When a hen has been undernourished for a while - meaning not enough of something she needs - it takes a little while to rehabilitate them. This I learned from much experience and trial and error. I use to feed 18% layer pellets but I noticed after a year or so my older hens were shrinking. I could easily tell the older hens from the younger ones. They were laying their lives away. All their vitality was going into their eggs and they were wasting away. A friend told me about what she feeds her hens and how big and healthy they are so since the factory was literally in the next town I started getting it. All their layer pellets are 20%! Nothing less. And they use natural supplements in the feed for the minerals and they don’t use animal waste in their feeds at all. Mainly it’s 20%! Well, long story short, a year later and I can no longer tell the young birds from the old ones and it seems that nearly all my chickens are laying most overt day. I still sprinkle the calcium grit over their pellets in the feeder and give them a few handfuls of corn in the evening to get them to go in the barn. It’s also important for them to have something green in their daily diet but I think more protein is going to solve your problem. It did mine. It will take maybe a month or so till you see significant difference but it should come. It’s clearly a diet issue if eggs are coming out without shells. I hope things improve for them very soon. I’m sure they want to lay eggs but just need some more help. You’re a good chicken Mom to try so hard to help them. We all have had challenges from our flocks so don’t feel bad.

 

[fanniefarmer]

Well, one more thing. I learned something from Becky of Becky’s Homestead on YouTube. She showed how if the hens are not happy with their roost or nest box it can affect how they lay. She is so funny. She showed how her roost was set up and what she figured out they didn’t like about it. She said, they weren’t comfortable with the arrangement so they weren’t resting so they were tiiiiired! It was hilarious. So she made some changes and egg production picked up again. Also if they don’t have enough nest boxes or the nest box is dirty or there are pests bothering them near the nest box. And of course don’t put cedar shavings in it or in the coop at all. And yadda and yadda. It’s usually not just one thing but a combination of little things. But you get those girls some more protein (Bartlett Mills) and some calcium grit and use it on their feed as well as put a bunch in a bowl near their feed and I bet things turn around soon. Please let us know!

 

[CWDancer]

Everyone makes good points here. If your birds are laying eggs out in the area they free range in, they may be feeding fox, dogs, racoons, possums, etc. and you won't find the eggs. I know if its hot my girls lay fewer eggs that day and even sometimes for a few days. Yesterday was in the 70's and I only got 14 eggs, I've been getting around 20. I have 28 birds. When they go into molt I get as few as a dozen with all those birds.
Today is a rain day so I expect they will make up for the lack of eggs today. I also see less eggs if they run out of food or water. It happens once in a while when you're busy and the birds will conserve energy by not laying an egg since they need that until they get food and water. If you run out of water for a short time it can take them around a week before they start laying again.
I have baby chicks right now so I am replenishing the water and feeders daily in both coops.
To check if they have gone into molt check their vents the ones that aren't laying will have smaller vents. Molt will last for 6 to 12 weeks and they will not lay eggs during this time as their bodies are focusing on the process of replacing feathers. They will get pretty ugly looking about 4 weeks into molt because they start shedding feathers. During molt they will start growing new feathers also, so the ugly look only lasts about a month or so.
Are they getting enough daylight? 14 to 16 hours a day? if not they may stop laying eggs. Rainy days can mess up their natural light as well, so a light with a timer to they get enough light might help in their coop. I have one that goes on at 4 am until about 6am during the Spring, longer in the winter because it doesn't get light until later. At night it comes on at 5pm and stays on until about 9pm. It helped me a lot with improving they hens laying.
Are any of your birds broody? Unless you can get her out of the broody mood, she will not lay period.
Some breeds lay a lot less eggs per year than others, for instance breeds such as Rhode Island Reds or Buff Orpingtons can lay more than 200 eggs per year. Whereas other breeds such as Ameraucanas or Silkies are known to lay less than 100 eggs a year. I had some Ameraucanas because I wanted some pretty birds, and I wasn't getting many eggs from them. I eventually culled them from my flock after 5 years.
I hope you find the answer to what is causing your girls to not be laying and how long it will take before they start to lay again.