bluebell stopped laying

[TomandBarbara]

Hi everyone hope to get advice from those experienced keepers.
My bluebell Penny is 3yrs old and is usually a great layer (5perwk) but over the past week she has laid 2 shell less eggs late afternoon in the garden not in nest box and since then nothing...This is day four of no egg from her.
We have recently added to our flock but had kept them seperated for a week then started letting them roam together for another week before they were put into the big coop together. (It's a huge coop so lack of space is not the issue
I'm concerned as I can't find much info on end of lay age guides. Is this an age thing or because of the new girls? Should it have been a longer integration period?thanks for any help.

 

[Teila]

Howdy TomandBarbara

I am no expert at what ails chickens and someone more experienced than myself may chime in. I am still a relative newbie at 2 years.

My 2 year old bantam laid two soft shelled eggs right before taking a break from laying and going into a hard moult. She actually had some of the soft shell stuck in her vent but she showed signs and symptoms reasonably quickly that she was not comfortable.

I am not sure what age they tend to slow up on the laying either, but she may just be having a break or as you mention, the change in routine with the new girls may have upset her.

Things that I would be keeping an eye out for are:
Reduced activity/lethargy.
Going off her food/water.
Changes in her poop; watery or colour changes.
Changes in her gait, if she starts to look uncomfortable or waddling excessively.
Straining.
Loss of comb colour, drooping comb.
Frequent trips to the nest box without laying an egg.

I hope she comes good for you and is just on vacation

 

[TomandBarbara]

Thank for the reply
Hubby and I inspected her yesterday her vent is clear and other than the usual waddle before she lays showed no signs of illness. Hadn't though she might be going into molt.will keep watching her and keep updates.

 

[azygous]

Yes, it's perfectly normal for you to see this as a hen takes a little break from laying. They usually pause for a few weeks up to a few months from laying to regenerate the egg factory. She will let you know by acting mopy and droopy if she is having a problem.

 

[TomandBarbara]

She is anything but droopy! It looks like we had another soft shell this morning in the coop but the yolk was already gone.

 

[TomandBarbara]

This morning (monday) Penny laid an egg! It was large and almost normal just a thin shell! Ive added liquid calcium with vit d to her water and put out extra grit and I will continue to keep watch over her.

 

[TomandBarbara]

Well things seem to be improving.another egg from penny today still seems thin but it's not soft!(it's the lightest of the 3

 

[bigbruce]

At 3 years old she will prob not be a consistent layer.

 

[Rani]

Yes, it's perfectly normal for you to see this as a hen takes a little break from laying. They usually pause for a few weeks up to a few months from laying to regenerate the egg factory. She will let you know by acting mopy and droopy if she is having a problem.

This is good news. My Ameraucana has not laid an egg in about two weeks, but otherwise seems completely happy and healthy. I hope this is the case. She is only one - maybe about to molt?
Rani