My girls havent given me any eggs in about 2 months!!

[rnoyster]

Redhen,
Mine stopped a couple of months ago. Just all at once there were non eggs at all! I went to the hardware store and bought a timer and plugged my overhead light in the coop into it and turned the switch on. Now my lights come on at 6am and go off on their own at about 8:30-9:00pm every day and the eggs are coming just a steady as before! Something about not enough light since the winter days are so short. Don't let anyone tell you that if you do this you need a special light either! I am using a regular 2 bulb florescent shop light and it has made a real difference.
Dick

 

[redhen]

Hi! We do have a light that comes on at like 4 in the morning... no light at night though.
Just told hubby to set up a light so it comes on for a few hours at night also.
Thanks!

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

I hear your angst!! I only had 3 eggs today....huh??? I feel totally let down

Well, I guess that means they'll just lay for me longer...or at least that's what I tell myself!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

12 to 14 hours of light total should be sufficient and it only needs to be light enough to barely read a newspaper by at the level of their roost. (so they can read the travel section while they're having their morning coffee)
Seriously though I was just using a cheap little single 18" flourescent, I think I paid $1 at a garage sale. Then one day the light wasn't on. I thought the GFCI tripped but I still had power. Turns out the weak ballast doesn't like 6 degrees farenheit. I had to switch to incandescent until it warms up.
So you can skip a day here and there but you don't want to stack the lightless days back to back. After all some days are sunny all day and some are dreary. You're just trying to make their innards think it is spring or summer. At 22 weeks I still hadn't gotten an egg.(it was autumn) I started lights and eggs started a week later and flowing well ever since. I know it's working cause some days all 10 lay.
The second winter or whenever they moult shut the lights off till they recover. Tougher if they aren't all on the same schedule.
Factory egg farms either keep all on a schedule with 16 hours of light and force moult with cold and low light for a second flush of eggs or just turn them into soup after 18 months of production.

 

[HudsonValleyGirl]

I have 6 hens and get about 3 eggs per week now. It is still just enough for my husband and I.

 

[HorizonSon]

If you have been hearing an unusual amout of noise coming from the coop at night, then it might not be molting... But rather, malting (malt liquor that is). This IS the season to be jolly!


Seriously; be sure they are getting plenty of protein (and fat), calcium and I recommend adding cayenne pepper powder to their feed. The pepper will boost their circulation (amongst many other good things) and this will help them ramp up their egg production to "normal".

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I never cease to be amazed, I got 10 from 10 today. The fourth time.

 

[boykin2010]

i had an ee and a polish that hadnt laid for about 4 months recently so i gave all my chickens red pepper! now those 2 are my best layers! i have gotten an egg from each one every day for the last week and a half! that pepper thing really works!

 

[Trishkabob]

why would the pepper thing work? is it good for them? Is there any advantage or dis-advantage to their health adding light or keeping them laying all winter other than the obvious desire for eggs? One of ours was laying and now isn't (although the person taking care of them at christmas said she saw an egg in the morning and it was gone that evening...? I hope they didn't eat it. we didn't find any eveidence....no broken shell, anything. weird) and the others were born in August so have yet to lay. I am assuming they won't lay until spring?
thanks.