molting again, no eggs, advice?

[okto]

my chickens layed for about five months (started january-ish) and have now started molting again. their third molt.

their last molt lasted about five months, then they took two months off just standing around eating. seven months of dink-doinking around.

I have three orpingtons and two australorps. one of the big orps layed about four eggs since last her molt and is now the first to start dropping feathers. four eggs. the rest have since shut down production and i am finding everyones feathers around the run. even when they were laying i only averaged about six eggs a week.

this seems like too much molting and not enough egg laying. i bought some heavies thinking that i'd get some egg production, but this seems ridiculous. no?

thinking of moving on to red stars.

these are the only chickens that i own, so i need a little perspective here. thanks.

 

[okto]

bump

 

[dawg53]

What you perceive as a molt could be something else. Have you given them a close up visual inspection for lice/mites? They will cause feather loss for sure and a drop in egg production as well. Especially check around their vent area and under their wings. How old are your chickens? If they are over a year old, egg production slows down too. If it's been hot, that'll slow egg production. Have you wormed them? If they have worms, they'll lack the necessary nutrients to be capable of producing an egg and act lethargic. Good luck.

 

[okto]

thanks for the advice. i've been thinking about worming them and looked into a couple of posts that describe a good way to go about it.

other than not laying, they are behaving normally, walking around the yard, clucking and digging. since i last posted, i've got three "molting", all the orpingtons.

checked for bugs, none found. just feathers.

i know that egg laying slows down, but my current production is pretty low, even by low standards. been pretty temperate too.

the queen of my small flock has always been the worst layer and i've always wondered if that had something to do with it. maybe they follow her lead?