Hens stopped laying

[TSP]

About half my flock is 2 and half 3 years old. My 2 year olds molted and stopped laying this past fall. Even when they were fully refeathered, they weren’t laying. I took two old LED fishtank light fixtures and put them in the coop on a timer because at 46* N latitude, we probably had less than 8 hours of daylight on the solstice. We are gaining about two minutes of daylight a day now and pretty soon, I wont need the lights. I keep a dozen hens for egg production and if they are going to be fed over the winter, they have to pay their keep.

 

[g0vtmule]

Most birds have their first adult molt during their second fall/winter....and will stop laying due to short daylight hours.

Ours went through their molt back at the end of JUL and never really resumed production. We havent seen an egg since mid OCT. Should we be concerned or is this just their normal cycle?

 

[TSP]

@g0vtmule,
that’s the exact reason I put lights up. Molt was over but light of day means no eggs unless artificially stimulated. Took less than two weeks to wake them back up.

 

[aart]

Ours went through their molt back at the end of JUL and never really resumed production. We havent seen an egg since mid OCT. Should we be concerned or is this just their normal cycle?

End of July is not too early, especially for older birds.

How old are they, in months?
....and....
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