Chicken got stressed and stopped laying -- will she start again?

[Jessie84]

Hi,

My one-year old chicken survived a predator attack about three weeks ago and lost a bunch of feathers, but seemed otherwise uninjured. After a few days, she returned to her normal demeanor and by now her feathers have grown back.

In this time period she has laid three eggs, down from 3-5 a week. This might be a dumb question... I understand that stress and having to grow feathers will cause a drop in egg production, but will she eventually start producing again? Has anyone had something similar happen? I feed her layer pellets and she gets oyster shell too. Other conditions seem normal -- fresh water, clean coop, etc.

One thing I noticed is that her legs are pale in comparison to my other chickens (pullets that haven't started laying yet). Does that mean anything? They are all the same breed.

Let me know your thoughts, thanks!

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Yes, one of my hens was attacked by a hawk and though suffered only feather damage, took about a week or so to start laying again.

 

[Jajika]

Makes sense. I'd stop laying eggs too if I suffered such a trauma.

 

[Jajika]

Makes sense. I'd stop laying eggs too if I suffered such a trauma.

 

[missnu01]

Hi,

My one-year old chicken survived a predator attack about three weeks ago and lost a bunch of feathers, but seemed otherwise uninjured.  After a few days, she returned to her normal demeanor and by now her feathers have grown back.  

In this time period she has laid three eggs, down from 3-5 a week.  This might be a dumb question...  I understand that stress and having to grow feathers will cause a drop in egg production, but will she eventually start producing again?  Has anyone had something similar happen?  I feed her layer pellets and she gets oyster shell too.  Other conditions seem normal -- fresh water, clean coop, etc.

One thing I noticed is that her legs are pale in comparison to my other chickens (pullets that haven't started laying yet).  Does that mean anything?  They are all the same breed.

Let me know your thoughts, thanks!

Is her comb pale? Or just Her legs because a pale comb usually means a sick chicken, but legs and beak of a laying hen will usually be lighter than the legs and beak of a pullet of the same breed not yet laying

 

[Jessie84]

Just the legs -- but I will keep an eye out, thanks for the feedback.

 

[aart]

Pale comb can mean different things.

Hens actively laying have combs and wattle that are brilliant red and waxy looking.
Hens that are NOT laying, due to molt or stress/trauma, have not so red and drier looking combs and wattles.

If the comb is really pale and she has other symptoms could mean illness.


I vaguely remember reading something about legs going pale due to the laying cycle or age....or .....I can't remember, sorry.

Sometimes all you can do wait and observe, no telling how the stress will affect her long term.

 

[missnu01]

A broody hen towards the end will have a pale sickly looking comb...buy it's because they barely eat while setting. My broody this year is looking great. She also leaves her nest for 30 min to an hour everyday unlike last year...and last year she sat for almost 7 weeks... that's a long long time to barely eat or drink. Anyway under normal circumstances a hens comb suddenly going pale usually means something is up..pale legs not so much.

 

[missnu01]

Also, do your hens free range or are they penned? Because 9 times out of 10 when I think mine have stopped laying they haven't. They've just started hiding the eggs somewhere. Last year I was getting about a dozen eggs a day and then it went down to 1 or 2 if that and I thought something awful was happening. Then maybe a month later I hit the mother load of hidden eggs...well about 12 eggs a day for a month hidden under a platform I didn't even think the hens could fit under....it was crazy...like a 3 ft pile of various eggs... made me want to seriously scold some chickens...w

 

[missnu01]

Not 3 ft high but 3 feet across like a nest that a condor would sit on full of chicken eggs...lol