Had my six hens for the third year and about two months ago egg production stopped. Have had a light on in the early AM for a week now and only getting one egg every other day. Am I to expect that they are done laying altogether???
If you force a bird to lay during the cold months by triggering her endocrine system with extra light, you can also shorten her laying longevity. To quote poultrykeeper.com: “Since a hen is born with all of the eggs she can produce in her life already inside her, if you intend to keep your hens for their entire life then you aren't gaining anything in the long run by providing extra light for them, but you will be able to get a supply of eggs during the winter months.”
I did. Put a light back on about three weeks ago nd only have gotten 4-5 eggs since then. It's been a week since man last egg and all the hens have molted and seem to be in good shape. When I go through this half bag of feed, and I don't have nah ore eggs, I'm going to have to put me in the freezer. Hate to do it, but I don't know what to do otherwise.