Egg production has disappeared in a young healthy flock, deformed eggs

[lorlcopter]

Hi all,

I was wondering if someone here could help me with a recent, precipitous decline in my flock's egg-laying output. From about the middle til the end of July, my six hens (born 2/2017, and laying from 8/2017 on without a problem, apart from a slight drop off in winter due to lack of sunlight) gradually stopped laying eggs. Whereas prior to two months ago, I'd get at least three or four eggs every day like clockwork, since the end of July I have gotten one correctly formed egg every three to four days, and just as often, a deformed or aborted egg (see pic below).

This photo is of one egg-lump I discovered today, pulled apart for illustration purposes. I have not changed the hens' feed - a good, organic layer (Coyote Creek, a brand available here in Central Texas) - and I have put out oyster shell as a calcium supplement, which the hens have not touched.

Of course, I investigated the various causes of egg production decline prior to posting here. At first I suspected the drop-off might be due to a lack of water, as I was running a five-cup pressurized watering system in summer and thought that the hens might not have enough to drink, so started putting out extra waterers by hand every day. The availability of the extra water, continued for six weeks, did not improve the hens' production. I have examined the hens' droppings for signs of worms (none that I can see, which of course does not disprove their presence) and their vents for signs of mites - again, nothing I can see. So unless they have invisible mites or worms, I am somewhat stumped as to what could be causing this egregious lack of egg production.

Has anyone encountered a problem like this or have any thoughts about what might be causing it? Would love to get my hens back to laying eggs soon. Thanks in advance.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Everyone that has raised chickens a few years has encountered the initial problem. The misshapen eggs, not so much. There are other causes but the primary cause of severe egg shell quality problems are respiratory issues.(IB being one)
Chicks hatched in spring of 2017 will be encountering their second autumn. That is normally when they will molt and egg laying will cease till they recover unless I add light some time in November. I have 2 buildings of 2017 hatchlings. There are only 2 birds laying out of over 20. I don't expect eggs from them again till December or January.
Most chickens will lay like gangbusters through their first autumn/winter but there will be an abrupt halt the following year - and every autumn thereafter.
If you like your birds, don't discard them. Once they have recovered from molt and days begin to lengthen, they will resume production like nothing ever happened.

The best thing you can do health wise is to increase protein and decrease calcium during this time.

 

[Peppercorngal]

Looks like a lash egg. That's an egg that gets mixed with other materials and gets "cooked" coming down (from fever). It's caused by salpingitis. Could be a very sick hen that will not survive, or could be a one time occurrence. I hope for the latter for your sake.

 

[lorlcopter]

Thanks for your replies. My chickens do not have obvious (audible) respiratory problems or pus coming from their nostrils, so they are not exhibiting the clearest symptoms of IB.

A year or so ago my black australorp hen developed... not quite a water belly, but some kind of rear abdominal distension just below the vent (see pic).

She has continued laying eggs normally as far as I know - or at least she did until stopping with the others back in July. She seems to be just as active as the others and is not in obvious ill condition or pain.

As for one time occurrences, we have had multiple lash eggs now - probably a half dozen over the past month. My guess would be they came from the BA, given what abdominal distensions can entail (internal egg-laying, although the distension has remained stable in size over the past year).

I should mention that in April of this year we hatched eight eggs under one of our original hens who had gone broody. The other hens continued to lay fine well past the hatch, suggesting that the hatching eggs (bought from a local show breeder) had not introduced any disease contamination.

As much as I'd like to believe ChickenCanoe is correct, and that the drop in egg production is due to the second year pause 'n' molt, in light of the lash eggs I'm a little worried about the health of the flock. I have gone out of my way to take good care of them, but who knows what they might have gotten into in my back yard.

Given this new information, does anyone have any thoughts about how I should proceed? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[Perris]

I don't think salpingitis spreads from one bird to another like say a cold (though am happy to be corrected if someone else knows better), so I wouldn't worry about the others, at least at this stage - moulting is the obvious answer to their drop in production as ChickenCanoe says. As for your BA, I have a RIR that recovered from it essentially on her own (she hated the recommended treatment so I stopped giving it and let nature take its course) and lays occasional large brown eggs again now

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Thanks for your replies. .....

As much as I'd like to believe ChickenCanoe is correct, and that the drop in egg production is due to the second year pause 'n' molt, in light of the lash eggs I'm a little worried about the health of the flock. I have gone out of my way to take good care of them, but who knows what they might have gotten into in my back yard.
....

I too would be concerned about any egg abnormalities. It seems like you have multiple issues. But any hens that had hatched in February of the previous year should be expected to molt and stop producing after summer solstice in the current year. Sometimes, birds of the breed I raise will even molt their first autumn if they hatch in December, January or February.