my Americana stopped laying

[irishgirlyme]

This is my first time raising chickens and its been a blast! I have 2 leghorns and an Americana that have been laying since mid-August. For some reason though the Americana stopped about 3 weeks ago. She sits in the coop on the eggs layed by the leghorns and seems liken shes trying to lay but its been a while. She isnt moulting, she doesnt appear to be sick, she just doesnt lay. They all use the same nest so she gets up and lets the other 2 lay and then sits back down on it. It's not cold yet in Vegas so I don't think that's it. We haven't changed their food or done anything different to their pen for her to be stressed out. Any ideas?

 

[Brahmachicken240]

Could she be broody ?

 

[americanchicks]

ameraucanas are not the best winter layers. Mine slow down a lot when the weather gets cold. Sounds like she may be broody. Dose she fluff up and coo when you try and move her?

 

[irishgirlyme]

yes! What can I do for her?

 

[rosemarythyme]

If she's staying in nest box most of the day, puffing up when bothered, hissing or pecking if you reach in, making a sharp chik-chik-chik sound when out and about, she's likely broody.

You can either let her hatch chicks or if you don't want any, break her of her broodiness by removing her from nest box and putting her in a wire crate with food and water for a few days (generally 3 days will do, sometimes more) until she stops showing some of those signs. You can then test her by letting her out to see if she goes back to the nest box - if yes, put her back in the crate for another day, then try again.

 

[aart]

These are my got to signs:
Is she on nest most the day and all night?
When you pull her out of nest and put her on the ground, does she flatten right back out into a fluffy screeching pancake?
Does she walk around making a low cluckcluckcluckcluckcluck(ticking bomb) sound on her way back to the nest?
If so, then she is probably broody and you'll have to decide how to manage it.

Breaker Crate: