hen stopped laying

[rooster-red]

Its been said that feeding them too much fruit can cause them not to lay.

 

[mfranti]

that's really good to know!!

until this week, temps have been in the high 90's and even in the 100's.

oh, i live in salt lake city.

 

[mfranti]

Quote:
do you have a link? we've got apricots and i've been letting them eat as much as they want.

 

[dancingbear]

Some hens start laying at around 20 weeks old, many others take longer.

The only things that have ever stopped my hens from laying are:

Moulting, you'll know because they'll be raggedy and there will be feathers EVERYWHERE, like a chicken exploded.

Brooding, you'll know because they won't get off the nest, and growl at you when you reach for them.

Illness or parasites, either internal or external. They usually show some sign, such as listlessness, poor feather condition, etc., same goes if they are over-run with parasites.

Excessively hot weather will slow them down. Once it cools off, it can take a couple of weeks for the egg production to kick back into high gear.

If a laying hen has been deprived of water for a day, it can put them out of lay for awhile, and if the weather was hot, sometimes a hen may be permanently damaged and not regain here ability to lay. I have never had this happen, but it's in one of my chicken health books, so I thought I'd pass it along.

If they're active, appear reasonably content, and the hen is otherwise healthy and free of parasites, look at the diet.

Not enough protein, or possibly lack of calcium, you can correct by giving a higher protein feed, and providing free choice crushed oyster shell.

If hens free-range, they may be hiding eggs somewhere. I've had this happen many times. If they're confined, sometimes they still manage to hide eggs, they are clever little things. I've found a stash of eggs buried in a dusting box, hidden behind feed barrels, stashed in a clump of weeds behind the water faucet, stashed between bales of straw or hay in the barn, they really are quite ingenious.
Sometimes, if you have too many roos, hens will get stressed and slow down. A LOT of stress can slow them down, but I've never seen it make them stop altogether. And I mean extreme stress, like gangs of roos chasing them all day long, for days or weeks on end, not just a change of housing. That might stress them the day of the move, then they're over it.

The eggs don't stop being produced by the body because hen is mad at you, sulking, (I don't think hens actually sulk) doesn't like the color of the walls, or any of that. They have short memories, and forget that missing roo in about a day. If they stop laying the cause will be physical, not because she's not in the mood.

 

[mfranti]

dancing bear,

thank you for you r reply. it's reassuring.

yesterday i went out and cleaned the dog house and gave them new bedding, raked all the poo/food/bedding/dirt/grass out of the run area (that stuff is great to mix into a new bed)

i noticed lots of feathers that i hadn't noticed before-maybe they were dirty and camouflaged? so it might be that they are moulting and it's been super hot and i'm not giving them enough food/protein.

like i said before, they used to be totally free range all day but since i put the garden in, i had to cage them up.

but stress is still a concern to me. i thought maybe mice were stressing them because i noticed some mice trying to get in the run area last night as it was getting dark. but it seems like chickens will kill mice (and eat them-yum!) so that's not an issue anymore, right?

now i'm concerned about bigger predators. i live in a suburban lot with other houses all around. i can't imagine what else is out there.

thanks again all