Hen who doesn't lay eggs ever?

[LandC]

Hello all,

I've for 5 beautiful hens, 3 of who are 10 months old and the other two are 8 months old. My head hen (called Angelica) is an Australorp who laid her first egg in June this year when she was 6 months old (now 10 months). I live in Australia and so that was the beginning of winter.
My issue is that she hasn't laid an egg since! All 4 of my other girls lay an egg almost daily and have done so for months. Angelica still sits on her nesting box every couple of days... But never actually lays an egg.

A bit of extra info about her:
- She is otherwise healthy. Completely normal chicken behaviour, even a bit of a bully to the younger hens actually.
- She is the only hen who has spurs.
- I have heard her attempt to crow twice.
- Her weight is stable, I weigh her every 2 to 3 weeks to check. Some minor loss or gains (e.g 70gms) each time.
- I've taken her to the vet who checked her out and said she looked healthy. Nothing showed up on her poop check or internal exam either.
- When she laid her first egg, it was perfect, no issues. She did seem to really struggle hormonally around that time though, was moody and stressed for about 3 weeks before she actually laid the egg.

Has anyone else ever experienced a similar issue?! She is a pet, I don't care that she doesn't lay, just want her to be healthy and well.

 

[Shadrach]

Hello all,

I've for 5 beautiful hens, 3 of who are 10 months old and the other two are 8 months old. My head hen (called Angelica) is an Australorp who laid her first egg in June this year when she was 6 months old (now 10 months). I live in Australia and so that was the beginning of winter.
My issue is that she hasn't laid an egg since! All 4 of my other girls lay an egg almost daily and have done so for months. Angelica still sits on her nesting box every couple of days... But never actually lays an egg.

A bit of extra info about her:
- She is otherwise healthy. Completely normal chicken behaviour, even a bit of a bully to the younger hens actually.
- She is the only hen who has spurs.
- I have heard her attempt to crow twice.
- Her weight is stable, I weigh her every 2 to 3 weeks to check. Some minor loss or gains (e.g 70gms) each time.
- I've taken her to the vet who checked her out and said she looked healthy. Nothing showed up on her poop check or internal exam either.
- When she laid her first egg, it was perfect, no issues. She did seem to really struggle hormonally around that time though, was moody and stressed for about 3 weeks before she actually laid the egg.

Has anyone else ever experienced a similar issue?! She is a pet, I don't care that she doesn't lay, just want her to be healthy and well.

Yes, I have had two hens that didn't lay eggs. One is still alive and is 7 years old now.
I don't keep hens just for egg laying so for me it's not a problem. This hen makes up for her lack of egg laying in other ways.

 

[sourland]

There may be some sort of hormonal issue that is keeping her from laying. She is apparently healthy in that picture - enjoy her.

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds like she is having some hormone problems. There also is a condition called false layer, where a hen will sit in the nest box, and eventually come out without laying a an egg, but the egg may have been laid internally and absorbed by the body. I had a hen like that for 2 years who did that. Here are 2 short articles about sexual disorders and false layer:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51806599_Disorders_of_Sexual_Development_in_Poultry

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/disorders-of-the-reproductive-system/false-layer-in-poultry

 

[LandC]

Yes, I have had two hens that didn't lay eggs. One is still alive and is 7 years old now.
I don't keep hens just for egg laying so for me it's not a problem. This hen makes up for her lack of egg laying in other ways.

Thank you, that gives me hope!

 

[LandC]

There may be some sort of hormonal issue that is keeping her from laying. She is apparently healthy in that picture - enjoy her.

Thank you, yes, I've been thinking it's a hormonal issue too.

 

[LandC]

It sounds like she is having some hormone problems. There also is a condition called false layer, where a hen will sit in the nest box, and eventually come out without laying a an egg, but the egg may have been laid internally and absorbed by the body. I had a hen like that for 2 years who did that. Here are 2 short articles about sexual disorders and false layer:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51806599_Disorders_of_Sexual_Development_in_Poultry

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/disorders-of-the-reproductive-system/false-layer-in-poultry

Thanks, that's helpful. Can I ask if your hen died from the condition after the 2 years or was it something else?

 

[SueT]

I think she is too young to say she doesn't lay eggs ever. She's not even officially a hen yet. Give her some time. See what happens now that the days are longer there.
That said, I had a 2 year old hen that never laid eggs as far as I know. She was killed by a predator last summer, so there's no finding out anything further.

 

[cmom]

I have a couple of birds an RIR and White Leghorn. They used to lay eggs pretty much daily. I had a mite outbreak several months ago. I treated the coops and all the birds seemed to be getting better but these two, so I moved them to another coop where I could give them some extra TLC. I did get an egg or two at first but now nothing since. They have fully recovered and look beautiful again but still no eggs.

 

[Eggcessive]

Thanks, that's helpful. Can I ask if your hen died from the condition after the 2 years or was it something else?

I had an outbreak of infectious bronchitis a common respiratory virus disease that can be spread by wild birds (and other chickens.) It can cause a number of problems with laying disorders later on, such as wrinkled or mishapen shells, shell-less or thin shelled eggs, and infection of the oviduct.

My hen who never laid eggs was rehomed to a friend who took excess layers and cockerels who he butchered for home use. At that time I had way too many chickens, so needed to depopulate. She also was not a friendly bird. Normally, I let all my hens live out their lives until they die, but at that time, I just was pressed for room.